Symphonische Metamorphosen
by Herr Wozzeck
Summary: Ganondorf: a quiet, misunderstood man who yearns for change. Marth: an exiled prince abandoned by his countrymen. This is the story of their love. Yaoi. Marf and various other pairings. SemiAU
1. Chapter 1: First Impressions

Hello, all! Herr Wozzeck here with a new fic.

Those of you that read all the reviews of RF's _A Forbidden Love_ should remember that I expressed inspiration from the story. Well, here's the product of the inspiration!

In the light of the inspiration, there will be several things that mirror _A Forbidden Love_, which thus makes the title (which by the way is a direct translation of the orchestral work _Symphonic Metamorphosis_ by Paul Hindemith) quite appropriate. The similar things are highlighted below:

1) Ganondorf is misunderstood, and Link hates him and spreads rumors; however, somebody comes to accept him for who he is. In a way, it happens with other characters as well.

2) The hands have human forms, though these differ wildly with RF's hands and they aren't initially in human form. You'll see in the second paragraph of the story.

3) There will be more than one pairing. Since I can't hold it, the main pairing will be Marth/Ganondorf. The others, I won't mention until later.

4) Most of the pairings will be yaoi, and in fact, there is a character who is openly homosexual. Do not read if you do not like!

And that's about it.

For those of you that remember me mentioning Eastern Music Festival, the super tense audition was this morning. I did great, but my fingers tensed up and you know the rest.

Disclaimer, eh? Sure.

I do not own Super Smash Brothers Melee. That belongs to Nintendo and Hal. The human forms of the Hands, the mansion, and some of the places I mention are all mine.

And here you are with _Symphonische Metamorphosen_! Enjoy!

* * *

Symphonische Metamorphosen

Part One

Chapter 1: First Impressions

A man sat alone in an area, waiting on something he knew would come. Exactly who the next person to arrive would be was the question that was coursing through his mind at that moment.

The 2nd Annual Super Smash Brothers Tournament had been put together by two people: Matthew Hand and his sister, Cornelia Hand, known as Master Hand and Crazy Hand, respectively. These two were fraternal twins in their human forms; however, nobody knew exactly what those forms were, as an enchantment had cursed them both to remain looking like a giant hand that could talk until the effects of the enchantment wore off. When that would be, nobody had any idea. This happened out of hate to the Hand siblings, and once they knew this, they knew they had to prevent more hatred from abounding.

And thus, the Super Smash Brothers had been formed. This was an organization that hosted tournaments and other events to ensure that peace was kept in the land. The tournaments were an opportunity to meet other people; and thus, many people went home with the knowledge that there were people from a land they hated that were nice, and hopefully, they would change their minds about their opinions to the said land and thus reach an understanding about others. The understanding that hate would not do anything to help anybody.

Although, the man that was sitting alone did not seem to think that tournaments where fighting was involved would do much to stop hate, since rivalries were formed because of them.

The man who was sitting alone was known as Ganondorf Dragmire. He was a somewhat quiet man in his late twenties with short red-orange hair that ran into his eyebrows and a pair of sideburns that ran down the side of his face like waterfalls. These matched his eyes that were identical in color, though both of these seriously contrasted with his somewhat dark skin that was acquired from living an entire life in a barren desert. On his head, he wore an elaborate circlet, signifying that he was the King of the Gerudo tribe. His garb was also fairly tribal in appearance, consisting of a leather shoulder guard that was black, a cape woven with basic cloth and what appeared to be designs of the Gerudo painted into it, and a recurrence of any of these as they alternated between brown leather, black leather, and the cloth that made up his cape that would reappear at certain points. All of this did an exceptional job of covering his well-toned muscles, though one was able to see his arms as being quite muscular.

For some reason that Ganondorf could not tell, he had been invited to the second official tournament that the hands hosted each year. If anything, Ganondorf knew that things were slated to occur that would work against him. After all, his rival Link was one of the opponents.

Ganondorf eyed Link talking to a friendly plumber in a crimson shirt and hat with overalls to match. Ganondorf figured that Link was giving Ganondorf a bad name. After all, Link was the Hero of Time. And after all, they were opposing forces.

Ganondorf just continued to sit where he was, deciding not to do anything. Ganondorf knew that the worst would be that he would be branded as the outcast and that would be that. Ganondorf would not mind, really.

But Ganondorf felt something in him that wanted to change. He had basically had enough of taking chances and starting wars between his tribe and the citizens of Hyrule, and a change of all of that was what Ganondorf wanted the most.

But he figured that some people would be too obstructed by Ganondorf's past to let him be.

"Well, you must feel pretty lonely sitting by yourself like this."

Ganondorf turned his head to see who had addressed him.

Standing by the couch that Ganondorf was sitting on was a man in his early twenties. He had hair of stark sapphire that imprinted itself in his clothing, his armor, and his eyes. He had a fairly slender figure marked especially by the fact that some of his clothing seemed to flutter slightly in the fervor of the so called 'air conditioning'. On his right side was a scabbard which at the moment housed a sword with a hilt that was decorated with fine jewels. There was a circlet on the top of his head, and a cape was hung to his neck that was bound by a red jewel.

Ganondorf snorted.

"Not exactly," he said.

"Something the matter?" asked the swordsman.

Ganondorf wanted to rant about how Link was giving him a bad name, but he decided not to do so.

"No," said Ganondorf. "I guess it's what happens when I'm the only man in a tribe."

The swordsman seemed perplexed at this statement.

"Only man in a tribe?" he asked. "How so?"

"It is a tradition of the supernatural forces," said Ganondorf. "My tribe consists almost entirely of women, and when a man is born he is automatically issued the right of leader."

"I see," said the swordsman.

The swordsman took a spot on the couch next to Ganondorf.

"So I take it that you rule over a tribe?" asked Marth.

"Indeed," said Ganondorf. "My name is Ganondorf. Ganondorf Dragmire of the Gerudo."

"Marth Lowell," said the Swordsman. "Marth of the kingdom of Altea."

"So you're a ruler as well?" asked Ganondorf.

"Not exactly," said Marth. "I am a prince."

"Ah," said Ganondorf. "But still, you are next in line to become a ruler."

"I suppose," said Marth.

"What would that mean?" asked Ganondorf, noticing a hint of resentment in Marth's voice.

"Nothing, really," said Marth.

Ganondorf was able to figure out right away that Marth was hiding something. He did not know what, but he knew that it was not great for a reputation.

"I see," said Ganondorf. "So, you were invited to this tournament as well, I gather?"

"Yes," said Marth. "I'll assume that you were invited as well."

"You assume correctly," said Ganondorf. "So, I guess we'll be fighting each other sometime?"

"Only if we practice together or end up in the same battle by coincidence," was Marth's reply.

Ganondorf nodded.

"I see," he said.

"Well, I better get going," said Marth, getting up from his seat beside Ganondorf. "I'd like to meet some more of my competitors."

"You're really quite friendly," said Ganondorf.

"Why, thank you," said Marth. "With that, I take my leave. I hope to see you sometime."

"As do I," said Ganondorf.

Marth walked towards the area where the rest of the competitors were.

Ganondorf had begun to like Marth as a person. He figured that first impressions really did make a great impact on people.

Ganondorf decided that he could trust Marth from one meeting. Marth seemed like the person who would be a friend for you no matter what was at stake. At stake, for Ganondorf at least, was the worry of being made to be evil by a certain man wearing a green tunic. So, Ganondorf decided to go to Marth whenever he had something to talk about.

Ganondorf rose from the couch to head towards the meeting room, where the smashers were supposed to meet in half an hour.

* * *

Twenty-six chairs, all arranged in a group around a rectangular stage. This stage would remind one of a fashion show, minus the women with acute curves marching across the stage in a mechanized manner.

Ganondorf, of course, was a little lost with the meaning of the shape of the stage. By then, thirteen seats were filled, and it was five minutes before the beginning of the meeting was supposed to take place. The only use Ganondorf could see for the length was the fact that it was good for making an entrance on.

Ganondorf had been waiting to see who would sit close to him. Of course, Link had already seated himself, as had his girlfriend, Zelda. Of course, they were far away. Rule of rivalry was what Ganondorf figured did it to them.

Everybody else was away from Ganondorf as well. Ganondorf surmised that this was because of Link. It could have been a variety of other reasons, Ganondorf knew that, but he figured that Link was the main reason.

At least Marth had not entered.

He felt a low grunt behind him as somebody got seated next to him.

"Well, looks like I'm going to have company over in the 'evil man' section of the tournament," said the person who grunted.

Ganondorf looked behind him to see not a person, but a large turtle with a spiky shell with green skin, a yellow belly, and (quite strangely to Ganondorf) flame-colored hair.

"So your reputation is being damaged too, eh?" asked Ganondorf inquisitively.

"Indeed," said the creature. "The name's Bowser, King of the Koopas."

"Ganondorf Dragmire of the Gerudo," said Ganondorf. "Who's damaging your reputation?"

"Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom," said Bowser. "She's the girl in the pink dress and the blonde hair over there."

Bowser pointed to a young woman who looked to be no more than twenty-one with blonde hair and a pink dress. Her eyes shone a brilliant sapphire, but Ganondorf figured that she hid many things behind that beautiful façade.

"I see," said Ganondorf. "The man who does so to me is the one in the green tunic over there."

Ganondorf pointed to Link.

Bowser chuckled as he saw the man who made Ganondorf look bad.

"That's quite sad actually," said Bowser. "I mean, look at his outfit! That has to be the sorriest thing that anybody has ever worn!"

"Now that you mention it, it does kind of look ridiculous," said a now rather bemused Ganondorf.

"I know, right?" asked Bowser. "Not even Peach would think about wearing something like that."

Ganondorf nodded in response.

By then, everybody had filed in. Ganondorf was able to see Marth. He was fairly close to Ganondorf's seat, however, Marth wasn't as close to Ganondorf as he would have liked.

Ganondorf figured it was because Bowser was in the seat immediately next to him.

Right as the thought left his mind, the lights in the meeting room dimmed. The only lights that were not dimmed were the ones centered on the stage.

Once the lights dimmed, a massive glove walked out onto the stage on his index and middle fingers.

"Weird way to walk, no?" asked Ganondorf.

"I've seen stranger things," said Bowser. "Ever heard of talking clouds?"

"Not exactly," said Ganondorf.

"You've seen everything when you've talked with one of those," said Bowser.

"Ladies and gentlemen," said the glove. "If I may have your attention please."

A silence took hold of the room.

"As you are all well aware, you have all been invited to the second annual Super Smash Brothers Tournament," said the glove. "I would like to take this time to congratulate all of those who have made it into this tournament that is really quite difficult to enter."

A small applause break took hold of the audience.

"I kind of like this guy already," said Bowser.

"I would not know," said Ganondorf. "I would like to get to know him first."

"Now, as some of you have probably guessed, I am Matthew Hand, also known as Master Hand," said the glove. "I am the organizer of this tournament, so if anything happens, you can always come to me."

"I sure hope you can," said Ganondorf. "One could use such help."

Bowser nodded.

"Now, I would like to take this time to hand out an itinerary of the tournament," said Master Hand. As he said this, an usher shuffled next to Ganondorf.

"Take one and pass the rest," said the usher. He handed Ganondorf a stack of papers. Ganondorf took the stack in his hand.

"To whom do I pass the rest to?" asked Ganondorf.

"To the person on your left," said the usher. "I take you aren't used to such shortenings?"

"That is exactly the case," said Ganondorf.

He took a sheet and passed the rest to Bowser.

"Take one and pass the rest," said Ganondorf.

Bowser took the sheets, took a sheet, and passed the rest down.

"Going around is an information sheet about the tournament," said Master Hand as the ruffling of papers and instructional whispers took up a steady drone. "These will tell you everything. They will tell you your matches, your room assignments, and various other things. If you still have questions, you can ask me in the office. I should now take this time to review the layout of the manse for you."

A white matter went down on the stage behind Master Hand. Then, an image appeared on it. The droning of sheets stopped as the image appeared.

"That's the layout of the mansion!" said Bowser.

"This is quite a large place," observed Ganondorf.

"You are currently here," said Master Hand as a red dot appeared in a small room in the middle of the setup. "To arrive at the match lounge, you simply need to take a left from exiting the room and you are there. All competitors not in the match can watch it from there. A set of stairs nearby leads to the dormitories. Your dormitory assignment is mentioned in each of the papers you just received. To arrive at the match portals, you simply walk to the right from exiting this room. The so-termed 'mess hall' is across the hall. The doors where access to the lawn is permitted are above this room as you enter it."

Red dots kept lighting up the map as Master Hand talked. Ganondorf wondered when the acquaintance with the map would end.

"And that would be the mansion." As the glove finished his sentence, the image stopped producing itself on the white mass, and the white mass retreated up.

"Now, I would like to go over something with the brackets," said Master Hand. "The first round is handwritten on the back of the paper."

Ganondorf turned his paper, and what with the dimmed lighting, he was able to tell what Master Hand was referring to.

"Now, the first round is already filled, but as people win, the tableau will obviously change," the hand continued. "You will have to keep track of the tableau on your own. If you are still confused, we will post the results of each round at the end. Also, practice fights will be allowed in the arenas; however, fighting in the mansion is strictly forbidden, as it is a hazard to health and safety of the competitors. As a result, all competitors that fight outside of the arenas and who cannot find a good excuse for doing so will be sent home, and they may not be considered for next year's tournament. That is all. You may now head to the mess hall."

The glove left the stage as the lights came up in the room.

* * *

Ganondorf sat across a table from Bowser. He was silently eating something called a 'steak'.

The mess hall was rather nice. The walls were painted a vibrant green with a bunch of pictures from fights the previous year imprinted on the wall. The tables made a fairly good contrast given the beige of the surfaces of the tables.

"So, what did you think of his speech?" asked Bowser.

"I am not inclined to think that he was that great a speaker," said Ganondorf. "But at least he went over a rule that should be followed around here."

"I wonder why it's a hazard to health to fight in the mansion," said Bowser. "If we have the same hazard to our health in there, why can't we fight here?"

"I would assume it is because they have some form of magic that keeps us from being harmed too much in the arenas," said Ganondorf. "The mansion probably lacks such a safety measure."

"Ah," said Bowser. "I get your point."

"I figured as much about that part," said a third voice from behind them.

Ganondorf turned his head to see Marth.

"Ah, hello Marth!" said Ganondorf.

"Is anybody else sitting here?" asked Marth.

"No," said Bowser. "You're welcome to sit here if you'd like."

"Why, thank you," said Marth as he seated himself.

"And you are…?" asked Bowser.

"Oh, my apologies," said Marth. "The name's Marth Lowell of the kingdom of Altea."

"Bowser of the Koopas," said Bowser. "I take it you've already met Ganondorf."

"Indeed," said Ganondorf. "I wonder why you decided to sit here when we're the table that is made of people that aren't that great."

"Well, that depends on how you look at it," said Marth. "I heard the stories from Link and Peach; however, I'm perfectly willing to get to know the two of you as people and not just as the villains of a multitude of fairy tales."

"I see," said Ganondorf. "I'm very glad to hear that. So who are you rooming with?"

"I have been assigned to the room right across the hall from you," said Marth. "My roommate is this man by the name of Roy."

"Roy of Pherea, I assume," said Bowser. "I happened to have had a short conversation with him just before the meeting."

"Really, now?" asked Marth. "What's he like?"

"He's quiet," said Bowser. "He can really be a tad raunchy at times with the ladies, though, as I saw him hit on Peach before he walked over to me. He looks like the kind of person who likes to know people for who they are."

"I can certainly see you two getting along," said Ganondorf tersely. "I am with this person by the name of Captain Falcon."

"Oh dear," said Marth. "You are going to have a very hard time with him as your roommate."

"Why is that?" asked Ganondorf.

"I had a fairly long conversation with him," said Marth. "He is quite full of himself, to say the least. He is quite easy to get into a fight with, so you may want to be careful. I also noticed a hint of believing in what others say and other things like that, so you will want to be careful."

"This is going to be a hard tournament…" said Ganondorf with an edge of grim anticipation.

"I can see," said Bowser. "I am rooming with a man by the name of Popo."

"You mean a child by the name of Popo," said Marth.

"Child?" asked Ganondorf.

"Yes," said Marth. "Apparently Children can participate as well."

"Oh dear…" said Ganondorf. "I would strictly forbid such behavior."

"So would I," said Bowser.

"Likewise for me," said Marth. "Of course, they have creatures here too, so I would think anything is possible with a tournament like this."

"Indeed," said Ganondorf, nodding.

"Eh, I won't mind," said Bowser. "I have a kid of my own back in my kingdom, so I am used to such behavior."

"I see," said Ganondorf. By then, he had finished eating.

"You will have quite a good time with him, then," said Marth. "He's an honest child, to say the least. He likes to play around, but that is typical of any child. There's an air of naiveté surrounding him, but he's usually easy to live with."

"Okay," said Bowser. "I hope he isn't as conceited as Ganondorf's roommate."

Ganondorf rolled his eyes at this comment, and a small chuckle escaped Marth's lips.

"I can't wait," said Ganondorf sarcastically. "Anyways, I'll be leaving you now. Good day."

"Good day," said Marth and Bowser.

Ganondorf rose from his seat, emptied the contents of his plate into the nearest of the so called 'trash cans', placed his plate with the other plates that had remnants of food on them, and left.

* * *

Ganondorf was lying in the top bed of a two-layer bed which had a ladder leading to the top. He was deciphering a short scroll for practice of the ancient Gerudo language.

The dorm was a little crowded, but it did look good. It was in the shape of a square with a window on the wall opposite the door that had a rather good view of the lawn behind the mansion. The lawn was a diamond shaped garden with a fountain in the center and four pathways leading to it which maneuvered around flower beds and hedge formations. The dorm was colored similarly, with flower designs embroidering the walls. There was a desk off to one corner, an entrance for a shower room off to another, and an armoire for clothing storage, though Ganondorf had doubts as to whether he would use it or not.

Ganondorf read in silence as the sun scoped low in view of the window. Then, it disappeared altogether.

Ganondorf slipped off of his bed, went down the ladder, and placed the scroll on the armoire.

He was going to go back to the bed when the door burst open.

"Well, here ah am!" shouted a voice with a somewhat heavy accent.

_Oh, great_, thought Ganondorf. _He's here…_

The plodding of boots on carpet sounded in the dorm.

"Well, this looks like a mighty nice place in here!" shouted the voice.

It was then that the owner of the voice noticed Ganondorf.

"Well, shake meh silly, it's that Gaanondorf ever'body's tawkin about!" shouted the voice.

It was then that Ganondorf turned around.

Ganondorf saw a man wearing a blue skin-tight suit and a red hat with a black part in front of his eyes. This black part did an exceptional job of covering the man's eyes.

"I assume you are Captain Falcon then?" asked Ganondorf.

"Well, somebawdy looked at his dowm assaignmeents!" said Captain Falcon.

"What is going on with your speech?" asked Ganondorf.

Ganondorf was incredibly perplexed by Captain Falcon's manner of speech, mostly because he sounded like he was drunk.

Captain Falcon froze expressionless, though Ganondorf figured a look of surprise etched itself on his face behind the black part. Ganondorf found himself wanting to laugh at the prospect.

"Well, don't y'all tell me that you ain't heard o' the old reyed hills o' Geogia!" said Captain Falcon.

"I believe I haven't," said Ganondorf. "That the accent of the people of that place?"

"What ayaccent?" asked Captain Falcon.

It was then that Ganondorf remembered that people with accents tend to forget they have accents.

"Never mind," said Ganondorf. "I believe I was thinking about the wrong things then."

"Gawd, man," said Captain Falcon. "Ah've had a heck of a day!"

"Getting to know people?" asked Ganondorf.

Captain Falcon walked over to the bottom bed.

"This yo's?" was the question that popped out of Captain Falcon's mouth.

"No," said Ganondorf.

"Well, you seyem to be mighty quick then," said Captain Falcon. "I better watch for thayat. 'Cause then, the quick geyet a hold o' ya better, and then ya ain't so happy after thayat. You know what ah mean?"

"I think so…" said Ganondorf, though in truth he had no idea what Captain Falcon was talking about.

"Well, I think I'm likin' ya already," said Captain Falcon. "Other than the speed, ah can feel you're earnest, and thayat's a good thing."

Captain Falcon kicked off his yellow boots, and then he contorted his body into a lying position. Ganondorf noted that quite a few muscles stood out amidst the blue jumpsuit.

"Oh, and just to leyet ya know, ah take an interest in meyen," said Captain Falcon.

"Interest in men?" asked Ganondorf. By then, he had climbed the ladder. "How so?"

"Ah tend to fall in love with meyen," said Captain Falcon.

Ganondorf's progress on the ladder was stopped.

"And you are open about the fact that you are a homosexual?" asked Ganondorf in a surprised tone.

"Yep," said Captain Falcon. "People shah away from me when ah say it, but ah'm not ashamed o' mah preference."

"Most men would be," said Ganondorf.

Ganondorf continued going up the ladder.

_Is that what he meant by 'full of himself'? _thought Ganondorf. _If it's more than that, I'd understand, but being openly homosexual is not really what I would consider conceited._

"Well, ah don't see anythin' wrong with it," said Captain Falcon. "It's just that some men lahke to be with others."

"I see," said Ganondorf. By this time, he was already laying on the bed.

"So, ah take it that you and some gal bah the name of Samus is goin' up against you tomorrah," said Captain Falcon.

"Yes," said Ganondorf. "First match of the tournament."

"Oh, ah knew Samus from the first tounament," said Captain Falcon. "She was last yeah's victah. You mahght wanta be careful with her. She can be feisty."

"Thank you for telling me that information," said Ganondorf. "Did you fight her once?"

"A couple o' tahmes," said Captain Falcon. "She's damn good, too."

Ganondorf heard the slip of clothing being removed, and when he looked over the bed he saw the blue jumpsuit discarded on the floor, the legs of the jumpsuit just settling on the floor. The helmet was placed neatly there.

"Sleep naked?" asked Ganondorf.

"Yeah," said Captain Falcon. Ganondorf then saw a glob of white skin emerge from underneath, and this person picked up the blue jumpsuit. Ganondorf resumed his watch of the ceiling as he heard the armoire door being opened and the sound of bare feet shuffling back to the bed beneath.

_He is not all that bad,_ thought Ganondorf. _Perhaps he's not as full of himself as we're inclined to think._

"People say you are quiyet evil," said Captain Falcon. "But ah don't seem to fahnd what people think eyvil o' you."

"I guess I am a little misunderstood," said Ganondorf.

"You ahre," said Captain Falcon.

"That is something we have in common, then?" asked Ganondorf.

"Yep," said Captain Falcon. "Can't wait to get to know yah. Good nahght."

"Good night," responded Ganondorf.

Ganondorf closed his eyes accordingly, the flowery ceiling giving way to a comfortable blackness.

As he drifted off to sleep, Ganondorf figured that perhaps people in the tournament would not be so bad after all.


	2. Chapter 2: The Tournament's Beginning

Wow... I had my ACT this morning, and the fact that I woke up with a sore throat, a slight fever, and a major headache did not help my testing at all.

So if the last part of the chapter sucks, you know where it came from.

Anyways, I wrote this up at a late time of night with a fever and stuff. It was worse earlier, where I had to deal with a headache that could be felt from light-years away.

Starting with the next chapter, I'm going to have some chapters devoted to works of classical music. The list will probably consist almost entirely of contemporary works, but if I feel like it, I may add some German late romantic output. Fun ensues.

Anyways, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 2: The Tournament's Beginning

Ganondorf sat in the waiting area of the arena access teleports the next day. He was waiting for the fight that would either make him or break him amidst the tournament. Since Samus was the champion of the first tournament, Ganondorf knew that it would be a very hard fight.

However, the king of the Gerudo tribe knew that he could not let that stress him out. He had fought enough to know that stress was a hindrance in the battle field that should be avoided as much as possible. Instead, he knew it would help to think about exactly what was at the end of the road of victory.

Ganondorf knew the consequences of victory all too well. He would be considered the best fighter of the group, and he would thus gain more popularity. He figured it would be quite a paradox for the one who seemed evil to be the most popular man in the tournament, but for some reason it felt correct.

The Gerudo's mind went to Marth for a few seconds. He was one of the three people in the tournament that had begun to accept him for who he was. Of course, Ganondorf would be popular, but that would be because of his skills in battle. The Gerudo King knew that those skills failed to say anything about the person.

At this thought, somebody walked in. This somebody was wearing a strange outfit that completely covered his or her body. This was colored red and orange, with a black screen similar to that of the part of the helmet of Captain Falcon.

"You must be Ganondorf," said a female voice from behind the black screen.

Ganondorf noticed a hint of contempt behind the voice, but decided not to bring it up.

"Indeed," said the Gerudo king. "You must be Samus, I take it?"

Ganondorf intentionally used the same contemptuous tone Samus had applied in his question.

"Did you just ask that the way you did?" asked the female angrily.

"You used the exact same tone on me," said Ganondorf. "What makes you think you are exempt from such a rule?"

"I am the winner of last year's tournament," said Samus.

"And what does that matter?" asked Ganondorf.

"It means I can do anything I want," said Samus.

"I would not be so inclined to believe that," said the man.

"Stop," said the female. "You are everything that Link said you were. He was completely correct. In that light, I will help to shame your name further by beating you! After all, I did win the last tournament, and I will win this one!"

Samus walked over to her portal, leaving Ganondorf to sit there brooding.

"Pride goeth before a fall," he muttered, before he too went over to his respective portal that would take him the first match of the tournament.

* * *

Captain Falcon sat in the so called 'match lounge' with the rest of the competitors waiting for the first match of the tournament to begin. 

Captain Falcon sat off to a corner where he could still see the large screen that would show the battle. The large screen was one of those plasma television sets wired to a series of cameras that would record the action and transmit it there. The wires to the cameras were hidden pretty well from the eyes of everybody, as the blue wallpaper with little pink and white shepherds and shepherdesses said. The grey furniture also revealed the lack of wires in the room.

The other competitors were off to a section of the lounge talking to each other about the competitors. Captain Falcon did not want to hear all the talk going around about how Ganondorf was evil mostly because he had seen a different Ganondorf the night before and he felt he would betray his new friend if he got into it.

Captain Falcon knew the terms and conditions of the tournament: there were anti-gravity items in each arena, and if a competitor was sent flying off of the arena, then that competitor was the loser.

Eventually, the screen turned on, and the underscore of conversation gave way to silence as an image of a fountain in the sky projected itself on the television. This fountain had three suspended platforms amidst the silvery and highly reflective waters it spewed. The ground around it was flooded with some of this water, and it made two of the platforms soar.

Then, two platforms appeared on either side: one harboring Ganondorf, and the other harboring Samus.

"Ready?" asked an announcer.

There was silence for a split second.

"Go!" shouted the same voice.

Captain Falcon saw the platforms dissipate as the two competitors ran at each other to begin the fight.

First, Samus tried to land a punch on the Gerudo King, but it was not successful when he jumped up to dodge the attack. Ganondorf then performed a downward kick that launched him at the bounty hunter. This connected, and Samus was sent backwards a few feet.

Captain Falcon expected Ganondorf to wait, but he did not as he launched himself at the bounty hunter to deliver an uppercut that also connected and emitted a small gasp from the audience in the lounge.

Samus hit one of the suspended platforms, and then rose from the ground, bitterness seeming to target every fiber of her being. She charged up her infamous charge shot to unload it on the king.

However, Ganondorf had other plans. He grabbed a nearby projectile weapon that had materialized from nothing and then threw it at the hunter. She rolled away from the path, and thus the projectile went past her.

She then finished charging her beam and promptly charged at Ganondorf. The sovereign attempted to land a palm attack on the bounty hunter, but this met with little success. The woman then successfully punched Ganondorf in the face, effectively sending him flying a few feet.

When he rose, she fired her charge shot; however, by then he had enough strength to jump up and dodge the shot.

Ganondorf then ran up to the woman and jumped before he met her. Samus jumped over, thinking he was going to land a downwards kick.

However, by then he had begun charging a punch move. Then, when Samus jumped in front of him, he let out a yell as black flames came from his hand in a powerful punch move.

This sent Samus flying a few more feet away. However, Ganondorf ran up to her and elbowed her in the stomach once she rose.

She then flew off of the arena, and after a failed attempt to get back onto the platform, she fell to her defeat.

As an explosion occurred where she was, the action stopped on the screen.

"Game!" shouted the announcer.

A statistics screen then came up.

"This game's winner is Ganondorf!" said the announcer.

The television then went off after half a minute.

Everybody stood there in awe at what had happened.

The returning champion had just been defeated in the first match. That, and she had been defeated within a minute.

Nobody said anything for a while.

Captain Falcon decided to say something after that while.

"Well, ah'll be dayamned," he said. "He can fahght!"

"Indeed he can," said Marth's voice from behind him.

Captain Falcon looked over to where everybody else was only to see an all too familiar man in a green tunic brooding off to one side.

_Oh, gawd,_ thought the bounty hunter. _Don't tell meh he's…_

"Now that he's defeated the former champion, I guess he is one of the best fighters here," said Bowser's voice.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that, sir," said the young man in the green tunic.

All eyes went to Link.

"And juyast what mahkes you think that ya can't be too shahre?" asked the bounty hunter.

"You never know if he employed any… cheating tactics," said Link. "You know?"

"Now why would anybody want to do that?" asked Bowser.

"Why do you think?" asked Link. "I beat him every time I come across him. If he can beat a woman that has beat me in the final match of the tournament, that has to say something about the use of cheating tactics. You know?"

The young man stood up and walked out of the lounge, leaving a bunch of people who had no idea whether to tell Master Hand, to regard Ganondorf as a hero, or simply to do nothing.

* * *

Marth and Ganondorf were hunched over a pair of sandwiches in the mess hall during lunch that day. Ganondorf had been brooding on the fact that people had been indifferent to his victory. When the king heard that Link was the one behind it by saying he had cheated, Ganondorf had wanted to strangle somebody. 

"But I do not understand, my friend," said Ganondorf. "Why does he insist on being an enemy to change?"

"Perhaps he does not recognize your desire to change," said the prince. "He may be holding on to the Ganondorf he knows to make himself feel better."

"I would not understand why he would do that," said Ganondorf. "I would think that my nemesis changing would be the greatest thing in the world."

"Some people are afraid of change," said Marth. "And unfortunately, we live in a world where change is inevitable. So we have people like Link doing things to attempt to prevent the change."

"So far, he is doing a very good job of it," muttered Ganondorf.

The young prince heard this last comment.

"Really now?" asked Marth.

"Yes," said Ganondorf.

"Please do not let it get to you," said Marth.

"I am tired of being called selfish by my own people!" said Ganondorf somewhat angrily.

Thankfully, everybody else in the mansion had eaten their lunch before hand, and thus they were not able to hear Ganondorf raise his voice.

"I want to change because my people label me as a selfish brat who seeks power and nothing else!" said Ganondorf. "I want to prove to everybody that I am capable of so much more! I want to be different!"

Ganondorf huffed and puffed after this statement.

Marth simply walked over to Ganondorf and patted him on the back.

"Some people are for change," said Marth. "If you ever need any help, I will always have my ears open to your conversations. Who knows? Maybe everybody will find out about your good side."

Ganondorf nodded simply.

"Thank you," he said. "Thank you for accepting my desire to change."


	3. Chapter 3: Scherzo ,Turandot,

I don't think I worded something in my last author's note correctly. I meant I'd title a chapter after a piece of music, and then develop the chapter similarly to how the said music is developed. Usually, such chapters are when I develop my characters, so if you're looking for character development here, you've got it.

In this case, I chose the scherzo from the work that gave this one it's name, A.K.A. _Symphonic Metamorphasis on themes of Carl Maria von Weber_. The scherzo is titled _Overture to Turandot. _In the case of this scherzo, it's a semi-pentatonic theme jumping around the orchestra that has eight repetitions. In this case, I trimmed the number down to four (I don't plan on focusing on enough characters to be able to create that many points of view), and it follows that vague outline of developing character.

I introduce a love triangle in this chapter. This triangle is between Roy, Zelda, and Link. Roy loves Zelda, who is in a relationship with Link.

Believe it or not, Roy's crush mirrors one of my own. You see, I have this crush on the principal oboist at my school (those of you who have read _Atrorie: Land of Dreams _who know about the whole 'growth magic' thing with the court musicians and the A/N in the chapter following it should know who I'm talking about), and yet she's in a relationship with somebody else too. To emphasize this point, I portray Zelda in this fiction to be as close an approximation to this person I know as I can write up. However, Link won't be the same as her love. As of now, I think I'm doing a good job with that (I almost wrote her first name instead of Zelda two times in a row).

Oh, and for those of you wondering whether the looks match, they do; just add craploads of clothes that cover her skin completely are any color but pink and you're there.

So yeah. That's all from me.

And I give you the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 3: Scherzo (Turandot)

A young woman of blonde hair and eyes that shone like sapphires looked outside to the garden quite indifferently.

Princess Peach Toadstool sat looking out towards the garden. She had been bored of all of this talk about a great tournament in the works. She herself did not know what the buzz surrounding the tournament was all about anyway. After all, she did figure it was just a showcase of people from all over getting together to fight.

Peach had no idea why she was invited in the first place: the young princess was always getting kidnapped some way or the other, and even then it was up to Mario to save her. True, she did save Mario and Luigi from Bowser's control of speech and other vocal effects, but other than that, she had been playing the role of damsel in distress time and time again.

In her opinion, damsels in distress never knew how to fight.

Peach sighed, stood up, and walked to her room.

Bowser had been invited as well. When people asked her about Bowser, she told them what she knew; she had always known Bowser as a king who would stop at nothing to take control over her kingdom for whatever wicked reason. Whether Peach had told them everything was left for them to discover.

Her thoughts turned to her roommate, Zelda. She was a blonde with sapphire eyes just like Peach, except she had elfin ears. She was a nice woman, though she was often subject to being offended easily and then rushing straight into a fit of rage over matters that were really quite trivial. For some reason, the Hylian princess was in a relationship with Link that did not seem to go well but continued anyway.

Peach figured that Zelda's relationship with Link would change such that they would not speak to each other again.

After all, Peach figured that Link was not the kind of person for Zelda.

She arrived at the door of her room and entered. Upon finding nobody there, she took a spot at the desk and began to continue to read the romance novel her friend Mario had given her as a birthday gift.

* * *

"Hey, you weren't supposed to do that!" 

"What do you mean, I wasn't supposed to do that? This is tag. I can do whatever I want!"

"Yeah, but most people would not hide behind trees to tap people!"

"Well, I just did. What are you going to do about it?"

"Now, now, Ness, let's not get smart on your playmates."

"But—"

"Ness, please."

"Okay, okay, but don't expect me to be so nice on you next time!"

Bowser was monitoring a group of children at play that included Popo. The other three in the group were his sister Nana, a smart aleck by the name of Ness, and a young boy who claimed to be Link's younger self; this last went by the name of Young Link. Popo was a youth with brown hair and large eyes, and anything else about him was difficult to see because of the large ocean-colored parka that he wore. Nana was almost identical, except her parka was colored a very rosy shade of pink. Ness had black hair and eyes, and he wore a striped shirt, shorts, red sneakers, and a large baseball hat the color of blood. Young Link looked exactly like his older counterpart.

The game of tag that had been going on in the garden continued. Young Link was it, and thus he chased the other three children around the grounds. Popo jumped over flower beds, Nana hid behind the various animal-shaped shrubs and ran when such a hiding place was no longer useful, and Ness used his telepathic skills to jump over the various foliage of the garden in ways that had never been seen before.

Bowser sat back on a bench and watched the scene in relative silence. Occasionally, Nana would hide behind his shell, and he would laugh a little and send Nana on her way.

The elder king thought back to his own young days, when he was able to run as freely as the four kids that were doing the same things. In his mind, those were good times. He could not run in his own garden, but he ran in the streets with friends. Bowser knew the exhilaration of the chase as a child was frantically trying from being 'it', and he knew the sadistic desire of the one deemed 'it' to strip him or herself of the somewhat dubious title. For he too had been a child once; he had been a very happy child.

As he thought back to his less violent days, he lost all track of the children.

His thoughts went to when his wonderful childhood suddenly came to a crashing end; it was the day that his father had been killed under the most bizarre circumstances. Then, it all changed; the pain had begun to seep into his being, and thus he had become a manifestation of this pain. He was fueled by revenge; and revenge would keep him searching for the one who murdered his father.

Popo leapt onto Bowser's lap and tapped him on the chest.

"You're it!" shouted Popo.

Bowser was taken very much by surprise at this.

"I'm it?" asked Bowser. "Since when was I part of the game?"

"We decided on it while you were lost in thought," said Young Link. "Come on! It'll be fun!"

The king was surprised by this. Most people would not notice that Bowser was lost in a great scheme of mind whenever he was, and thus, nobody said anything at all.

With a mental wave of the hand, Bowser dismissed the notion of Young Link being very observant.

The king stood up with a grunt, but not before Popo leapt off of the large reptile's lap.

"Okay, then," said Bowser. "Here I come!"

With a playful roar, the king of the koopas scattered the children, and thus the game continued.

* * *

Captain Falcon sat in a corner of his dorm. 

He had removed his helmet and was currently sitting in his room.

Ganondorf sat on the older man's bed, not much farther from the man in the blue jumpsuit.

The pilot had removed his helmet, and thus one was able to see his features. His amber eyes seemed to trace everything in his path, and the scar on his left eyebrow attested to a past that was quite difficult. The gloved hand of Captain Falcon was going through a mop of somewhat unkempt chocolate-colored hair as if searching for something there.

"I wonder why you wear the helmet," said Ganondorf.

"Weall, for bein' thawty-siyex, I do look mighty attrayactive," said the racer. "Buyut I prefer to hahde mah face behind a heyelmet in front o' other people."

"I see," said Ganondorf. "I respect your opinion, but I think everybody would be after you."

"Now whah do you sahy 'ever'body'?" asked Captain Falcon.

"All the men and all the women would be after you," said the king. "Think about it for a minute. That jumpsuit of yours is very tight to your skin, so people can see those rather large muscles of yours. And then, there's your brown hair and eyes to match. Those would make people go crazy. Lastly, there's the scar. I think it's quite properly positioned."

"Yeah, said the captain. "But some people hayave told meh thayat gay peyople hahde behind mayasks so that nobawdy can proyove anythin' about it."

"Now who ever told you that?" asked Ganondorf. "People would not recognize a homosexual just by looking at one."

"Ah don't know," said the captain. "Those peyople that coyome from where ah was born were as meyan ayas a druyunk on the sahde of the streyet."

"You were not raised in a good environment?" asked Ganondorf.

"Thayat's exayactly it," said Captain Falcon. "Wheyen ah told pa about mah preference, he gone an' threw a fit thayat y'all could hear from theh valleys o' Tenessee. You would not hayve wanted ta be me wheyen pa goyot as mayad as hi did thayat day. He trayed tah kill meh, and wheyen ma got home, she gone threw a fit thayat y'all could hear from theh other sahde o' the world."

"My goodness!" said the king. "That is really quite horrible! All because of your preference?"

"Yep," said the F-Zero pilot. "Ah rayan away aftah thayat. Where ah live nowadayes hayas much bettah people, ayand so ah can say thayat ah'm gay an nobody'll say a dawn thing about it."

"I can see why you would be free in such an environment," said Ganondorf. "So who do you find attractive so far in the tournament?"

"Weyell, there oyone person ah seyem to be interested in," said Captain Falcon. "Fiyrst, there's thayat doctor around here."

"Doctor Mario?" asked Ganondorf.

"Yep," said Captain Falcon. "Asahde from theh doctor's stuff, ah think he's quahte cute. He's quaht showt, but fo' me, thayat mahkes a man look bettah."

"I see," said Ganondorf.

The F-zero pilot stood up, went to the armoire, and opened it.

"Ah'ma go tahke a showah," said the captain. "Ah'll talk to ya latah."

"Alright," said Ganondorf.

Captain Falcon walked into the shower room with a second jumpsuit and a towel dangling from his broad shoulders.

* * *

Roy sat in a chair inside of the mess hall, looking at a young man in a green tunic and a young woman in a pink dress with a strange lilac apron-type apparatus on top of the dress. 

The young fiery-haired man sat up in his chair as he spied on Zelda. It was already the second day of the tournament, and he found himself staring at the beautiful young Hylian almost half of the time that she was in the immediate vicinity. He did not know why, but there was something about those oceanic eyes that captivated his being and drew him in for more.

Roy had talked to Zelda a few times, and Zelda seemed like a very random woman. She usually said the most random things in the most random tones of voice that one could imagine, and this made her quite funny in an unintentional way. She also did the most random things when the situation was not quite calling for it. In this way, Roy knew that he had to watch his back whenever he was around her, since Zelda was as unpredictable as the weather.

In that light, Roy liked to watch Zelda from a distance. She was usually at her most sedate from a distance (She was even more so with Link, for some reason.), so Roy tended to watch from a distance.

Zelda did seem quite sociable to Roy, however, all of the conversations he had ever had with the young Hylian were quite short and simple. Why this was, Roy was not quite able to tell. However, she seemed to be more acquainted with some of the others in the tournament, so he figured she preferred to want to know what a person was like before getting into a long conversation.

For some reason, Zelda avoided Ganondorf. Roy knew from his roommate Marth that the king of the Gerudo was a fairly good person, so he had no idea why Zelda was ignoring him. Whenever he addressed her, she just waved her hand and either turned around or continued on her way. Of all the people he figured she would want to know, he was the one who was avoided all of the time.

Roy thought of this as he continued staring at the Hylian beauty.

Zelda then stood up and left with Link.

Their hands were joined as they left.


	4. Chapter 4: Surrounding the Second Match

(H.W. flashes his newly acquired class ring in the faces of his readers)

Bling.

Yeah. My school's ring ceremony was two days ago. I spent all of yesterday flashing my ring in people's faces saying 'bling' as a greeting. And thus, I did it to you because of the fact that I know you a bit (especially RF). So you know where that leads.

Anyways, my great interest hiatus on A:LoD began yesterday. However, I have a bunch of things on my 'want to do' list, so if you think it means this will go any faster, then that's where you are unfortunately incorrect.

But hey, at least I can give more thought to this, right?

Oh, before I begin, there's one thing I need to clear up; I added 'semi-AU' to the summary recently. This is because there are going to be things that change between the game and this story. One of them is Falcon's past (which I'm going to go into a bit later in the story), and the other is the fact that the Ice Climbers are now two seperate fighters. That's right. It's now Popo and Nana instead of the two of them together. You know the rest.

But eh. Here's the next chapter.

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 4: Surrounding the Second Match

Ganondorf had chosen not to watch the next match in the lounge, as the other competitors would probably give Ganondorf dirty looks if he tried to blend in with them. Accompanying him was Marth.

"I wonder why you decided to sit here," said Ganondorf. "I mean, you can blend perfectly well with the rest of them. I am the one who cannot."

"It is not healthy for a man to be alone," said Marth. "If I ever accompany you, it is to make sure that an early death does not come upon you."

"Really?" asked Ganondorf. "How could anybody care for a scoundrel like me?"

"You attempt to change for the better," said Marth.

"Ah," said Ganondorf.

"Besides, I cannot find anything about you that is close to being a scoundrel," said the young prince.

"Well, I did do all of the things that Link says I did," said the king of the Gerudo tribe. "I wonder how I am to justify myself for that."

"So you did kidnap Princess Zelda," said Marth. "I wonder what is so horrible about that."

"Well, I could have killed her," said Ganondorf. "I had the mindset to do it; however, I did not for some reason."

"Well," said Marth. "You did not. Tell me: why did you want to kill her?"

"Power," said Ganondorf.

"I see," said the prince. "Let me tell you this: power is an easy thing to abuse. It is best to stay away from such a notion, for it can destroy a person rather quickly."

"Alright," said Ganondorf. "Tell me; how do you know this?"

Marth looked at the ground. Ganondorf took this as a hint that it was something that the prince did not want to talk about.

"That's alright," said Ganondorf. "I respect your privacy."

Marth then lifted his head, and after a small smile of appreciation, he continued the conversation.

* * *

Link appeared on a platform hovering above several vehicles moving over a surface faster than the young Hylian could ever imagine possible. All this he beheld as ahead of him a few feet was a young boy.

This young boy was Link's competitor who, in his mind, was unlucky enough to be involved in the tournament. He would be going down quite easily in Link's mind.

This young boy wore a blue parka. He had heard from other competitors that this was Popo.

The platforms disintegrated as the word "Go" was shouted by the announcer.

Link landed on the largest ship, and the fight began.

* * *

Samus sat in a corner of her dorm, all alone.

She was getting busy sulking about her loss to Ganondorf a few days before.

Samus had nothing to do with the 'how' of something, and would not care to find out that Ganondorf had trained under the hardest of conditions, such that he would be a formidable foe when it came to the actual conditions of the arena. All she cared about was the fact that somebody had shattered her reputation as the greatest fighter ever to grace the federation.

She had beaten Link so easily in the first tournament, and since Link had tipped her off that Ganondorf had been defeated by him before, she felt it should have been an easy fight.

She wondered why the hell people were still talking to her after that loss anyways. She felt that nobody should be talking to her. After all, she was a complete failure to her own eyes. Her bitterness towards the man that defeated her blocked the thought that perhaps she should ask the other competitors exactly what they thought, and thus she had no idea that they still considered her a human being and nothing less than one.

Samus thought about what Link had spread about cheating. The bounty hunter was not one to accuse anybody of things unless she had proof, but she could not help but feel that Link was correct in regards to Ganondorf cheating.

Samus shook her head. She knew that the only way to rid the doubt in her mind was to talk to Link about it and see how he felt about the issue.

She decided to talk to the young man after the match ended.

With this in mind, she stood up and walked out of the dorm.

* * *

Link had been victorious in his match against Popo.

It had all happened so fast. Link had been pretty fast with his sword, and thus he had managed to beat Popo despite having a few things weigh him down.

Just then, he appeared at the portal that took him to the matches. Popo was already there.

Popo looked rather okay about losing the match. He felt he had done his best, and that would end that. With this in mind, the young boy picked up his hammer and went out the door.

Link left afterwards, an expression of victory on his face.

After this, he went over to the dorm hall.

However, as he stepped once on the stairs, he met some red armor.

"Hello," said Link. "Samus, was it?"

"Yes," said Samus. "I was hoping I could ask you something."

"Go on," said the young Hylian. "What's up?"

"It's about Ganondorf…" said the young woman.

"Ganondorf?" said Link. "I guess it's about the likelihood of cheating?"

"Why, yes," said Samus. "How did you guess?"

"Sixth sense," said Link. "I tend to have one that's quite hyper, if you will."

"Okay," said Samus. "Do you think he would have cheated?"

"Yes," said Link. "After all, he would kidnap a woman in an attempt to gain power. If he does things dishonestly, what do you think he would do in a tournament like this?"

"True," said Samus. "So I lost to something like that? I guess I should tell Master Hand."

Samus moved past Link, but he grabbed the black block that was her arm cannon.

"No," said Link. "You won't tell him."

"Why not?" asked Samus.

"Don't you want to see him suffer silently?" asked Link.

This comment created quite a magic on Samus. For then, the black disk that was the glass of her helmet came to face him directly.

"Yes," said Samus. "He shall pay for cheating…"

"Then you won't tell?" asked Link.

"No…" said Samus.

With this, Link released his hold on the young woman.

"Settled," said the young Hylian. "If you have any further concerns, feel free to talk to me."

"Sure," said Samus.

She walked away from Link, in the direction of the mess hall.


	5. Chapter 5: Laideronnette

Hey, all. You know who is speaking by now.

I got a bout of writers block towards the end here. Not writers block in the sense of plot though; writers block in the sense of''should I put something here or not?' writers block. In the end, I didn't add much to the end, but I wanted to. I don't know why, but I wanted to.

Anyways, I look more like an Irishman right now than your average person. Damn dermatologist turned up the power on my laser treatment and caused it to have sunburn-esque side effects. Grr...

I'm currently in the process of writing the first chapter of a murder story (not the one with the staff of my C2) that will be titled _The Wood_. If you're liking how the characters are developed over here, I plan to go into overload with characterization there. You know?

Oh, and there's a 'myth' from Gerudo territory here. I actually have to give a little credit to somebody over here: that tale isn't my own that I came up. It's a 'Gerudified' version of a French fairy tale known as _Le Serpentin Vert_ in the original language. _Le Serpentin Vert _is by Mme d'Aulnoy. If you are interested in figuring out the differences, the translation is something like "Green Serpent".

Oh, and if you're wondering why it's the title, a quote from _Le Serpentin Vert_ is posted at the top of the score of the third movement of Ravel's _Mother Goose Suite_ (_Laideronnette: Impératrice des Pagodes_). You know the rest.

So that's all from me. Here's the next chapter.

Enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 5: Laideronnette

Zelda sat over an unfinished ham sandwich that Link had given her for lunch. He had to run off when Samus asked to pull the young man aside for a few minutes; however, she knew he would be back.

The young Hylian sat back in her chair thinking about nothing in particular.

Then, footsteps came closer to her.

"Heya, Zelda!" said Roy's voice in a fairly loud tone of voice. "How are you doing today?"

"I'm doing great, thank you!" was Zelda's reply. She intentionally said it as loud as Roy had.

"Wow," said Roy. "No need to scream at me like that."

"Well, if you'd tone it down a little I wouldn't have to scream at you like that," said Zelda.

"Yes, Zelda," said Roy. "Anybody sitting here?"

"Link went off to talk with Samus," said Zelda. "I wouldn't sit here if I were you."

"Well, I guess I won't then," said Roy. "See ya later."

Zelda left no reply as the young red-headed lord went off to find a table somewhere.

The young Hylian suddenly went into thought as Roy sat down.

She was not sure why, but Zelda felt that Roy had been attracted to her like a magnet. After all, Roy had been taking every opportunity to talk to the young woman, though each opportunity ended somewhat awkwardly for the young lord.

Zelda was thinking about this when Link walked back to Zelda.

"Some people told me Roy stopped by the table asking for a seat," said Link.

"No, I didn't try to cheat," said Zelda. "You should know that I am quite steadfast to love by now."

"Yes, I should," said Link. "I can be quite paranoid like that."

"You are paranoid like that," said Zelda. "That's all there is to it."

Link looked towards nobody in particular, and then went over to the food line to get something to eat.

* * *

"Well, brother, I wouldn't see what the heck is wrong with him," said one gloved hand with a female voice. 

"Neither would I," said the only other animated glove. "I wonder what makes Link hate that man…"

Master Hand and Crazy Hand had been discussing Link's hatred to Ganondorf for a while now. The young boy known as Young Link had told Master Hand that Link accused Ganondorf of cheating at the beginning of the tournament. However, when he checked the data of that fight's programming, there was no evidence of tampering with the code.

"I wouldn't know," said Crazy Hand. "If the virtual reality data was not tampered with, then Link had to lie, right?"

"To make Ganondorf look bad," said Master Hand. "That means that Link must hate Ganondorf."

"I know," said Crazy Hand. "But what makes you think that after one report?"

"Trust me, sister, sometimes one thing can lead to a proliferation of items…" said the male glove.

"I never get what you mean by that, but whatever," said the female hand. "I wonder when the spells will fade away. I'm itching to return to my human form. You get tired of sitting around looking like a glove after a while."

"And I want to change back to my human form as well," said Master Hand. "Although, in my case it is for reasons that nobody would tolerate…"

"Your homosexual hormones kicking in again?" asked Crazy Hand. "Who's the lucky man this time?"

"Luigi," said Master Hand quite simply.

"Okay," said Crazy Hand. "You are waiting until you can get your human form back to talk to him, right?"

"Yes," said the male glove.

"Understandable," said the female glove. "I wonder what we're going to do about Link…"

"I think it is quite simple, sister," said Master Hand. "We wait and keep track of anything between the two. It should work, right?"

"I hope so," said the female glove.

* * *

Popo, Nana, Young Link, and Ness were all crowded around Bowser. The kids were laughing at the reptile's failed attempt to tell a story. 

How the group had wound up as such was a rather simple subject. The group had gotten tired of running around the garden playing games of tag, and so Bowser suggested a story-telling circle. So far, the only other person to tell a story had been Popo, and he had told a pretty interesting story.

However, poor Bowser had an entirely different affair. The poor man had either fallen asleep or not paid attention when he was taught the mythology of his homeland, and thus he could not put a consistent story together. The number of contradictions he told led the children to laugh. Bowser's face was red with rage as he attempted to tell his story amidst the mischievous laughs of the children.

"And then he ran off to the valley and tried to kill himself, but Leona wouldn't let him," said Bowser.

"But isn't Leona a skeleton when put in imagery?" was the question that came out from Young Link that was more as a laugh than anything else.

With this, Bowser's face was turning a brighter shade of red, and the children ended up laughing even harder.

"But she had gained strength!" said Bowser.

"But can you gain strength that fast?" asked the female ice climber.

And then Bowser's face turned a deeper shade of red, and the cruel cycle continued thus.

Eventually, it got loud enough that Ganondorf ended up walking over to the group.

"Why are you laughing so loudly?" asked the king. "My roommate is trying to get some sleep!"

The children continued to laugh. Poor Bowser had to look to Ganondorf with that reddening face.

Upon seeing this, though, Ganondorf said nothing.

"He's trying to tell a story," laughed Popo. "But he's doing a bad job of it!"

The children continued to laugh while Bowser looked at Ganondorf with that reddening face of his.

Ganondorf swore that Bowser's eyes were pleading with the king of the Gerudo to do something to end this shame.

Ganondorf nodded and sat down amidst the group.

"Well, if he is not telling a good story, I think I might have one," said the Gerudo king.

The kids slowly stopped laughing.

"Really?" asked Popo.

"Tell!" said Ness.

"Alright," said Ganondorf. "The following is a Gerudo myth:"

And thus he began the story of a woman known among the Gerudo as Jerontald, who was doomed to be the ugliest woman in the world by the spell of an evil fairy. This evil fairy was jealous of other fairies who were invited to their birth feast, which caused her to cast this spell on poor Jerontald. When the children expressed interest in seeing how the rest of the story turned, he told of how Jerontald came across a desert serpent one day who fell in love with the ugly Jerontald, and who after accidentally chasing her to her near-death, took her into his house and cared for her until a war waged by the evil fairy caused the serpent to be captured and Jerontald to become a servant. In one errand, Jerontald found water that undid the work of the evil fairy, and after a fairly difficult journey to the underworld, she restored the serpent to his apparently existent human form. The bond of love between the two then proceeded to force the evil fairy to break all of her spells, and then Jerontald returned home and the pair lived happily ever after.

"Wow," said Ness. "Who would have thought that the serpent was actually human?"

"Yeah," said Young Link. "Was that another enchantment of the evil fairy?"

Ganondorf nodded his head in response.

"I'm so glad that Jerontald lost her ugliness towards the end there," said Nana. "I wouldn't want to go around being the ugliest woman in the world."

"Well, do keep in mind that she did ask to be placed in a tower so nobody would see her," said Ganondorf.

"I wish I could hear more Gerudo mythology…" said Popo.

"There is plenty of it," said Ganondorf. "Want me to relate some more?"

"Yes!" said the four children simultaneously.

"Well then, let us get started, shall we?" asked the Gerudo King.

The children huddled into a circle around Ganondorf.


	6. Chapter 6: Das Obligate Rezitativ

Well, after a little more than a quarter of a year of rehearsals, _Hansel and Gretel_ opens tonight. Wish me luck, will you?

And now, we have something else named after music. This time, it's the title of the fifth of Arnold Schoenberg's _Funf Orchesterstücke_. Here, I'm not really aiming at attempting to develop it like the music at all.

However, you have this chapter, right?

So here you go.

Enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 6: Das Obligate Rezitativ

"Sheh stiyill is iyin thayat relayshionshiyip on Link?"

"Of course she is. I wonder why it hasn't registered in your head yet. Every time I try to get closer to her, I end up getting bite marks in my brain from that woman."

"Weyell, if it geats to yo' mahnd so damn awften, then whah are yeh still in loyuve with her?"

"Because I find those mental bite marks irresistible."

Roy and Captain Falcon had been conversing about Roy's crush on Zelda and the relationship the Hylian woman was in with Link. Roy had been whining about the fact that Zelda was in a relationship with Link. The young prince had found out from Peach that the two had been a pair for quite a while, and that they were going out together.

And after four days of waiting to see if Zelda broke up with Link (Roy had been told by Peach that the relationship felt a little forced), Roy failed to get the results he had been praying for.

And thus, he went to his friend Captain Falcon to see if there was a secondary point of view on the issue.

Unfortunately for the prince, though, Captain Falcon was giving him as hard a time as Peach had.

"Weyell, ah wouldn't mahnd if those meyental bahtes you tawlk abawt are over a seyingle woman, but ah would geyet pissed if somebawdy was tawlkin' about mah love," said the Captain.

"And if your love is bisexual?" asked the prince cynically.

"Theyen fahne, he's bahsexual," said Falcon. "But ah'll be dayamned if ah leyet somebawdy eyelse fall in love with him an' fahnd myself alone becawse he loyeves him mo'."

"And how does that relate to Zelda?" asked Roy.

"Thahnk about it, for Chrahst's sake!" shouted the captain. "If you whare Link, what woyuld ya do if your gal rayan off with some owther gahy?"

"I would be pissed," said Roy. "But breaking up is an entirely different thing! You don't get the point!"

"Listen, Roahy," said the captain. "Ah'm sayin' this fo' your ouwn good. Doyon't trah to make anythin' romayantic in front o' her. Wayt fo' him to leyave her, and theyen move in." Roy moved to make a comeback, but the captain continued. "And truyust meh, if ya thahnk ah lahke it wheyen people ruyun around goin' crahzy with lovers, y'all are not rahgt."

"Look, Falcon," said Roy. "You may think that fidelity is the greatest thing in the world, but please, don't use your ideals on somebody else. Understand?"

Roy stormed off in a somewhat angry trance.

For Roy, Captain Falcon had provided no help whatsoever.

* * *

The children sat in the match lounge. There was no match going on, so the television screen was black.

However, the four had called a meeting to discuss something.

Popo and Nana were sitting at the table, while Young Link was lounging on the couch and Ness was sitting in the rocking chair.

"Okay," said Ness. "Now that we're all here, I guess we need to start talking."

"Yes," said Nana. "I don't seem to see anything evil about either Bowser or Ganondorf."

"Yeah," said the boy who wore green. "My older self is always saying bad things about Ganondorf, and yet he seems so much nicer than he is made to be."

"I can say the same about Bowser," said Popo. "I mean, besides the supervision and all the fun we have with him, he is my roommate, and he has revealed himself to be a good person."

"And yet Peach says otherwise," said Nana.

"I know," said Popo. "That is what confuses me. If these people really are evil the way Peach and Link make them seem, they'd be smacking us in the butts all of our bad deeds."

"Or they could smack us with those Westcott rulers until we would be bleeding our tears," said Young Link.

"Yeah, but they don't have those," said Ness.

"I'm confused," said Nana. "Experience is telling me that the two are good people, and yet some people say otherwise…"

"I think it may have something to do with the mentality," said Ness. "Remember those signals of malevolence I would pick up whenever Link would talk about Ganondorf? I think that such a thing might be related to the mindset."

"I think you're on to something," said Young Link. "But how does it explain Peach? You never picked up anything malevolent from her."

"I wouldn't know…" said Ness.

"It's confusing how it's done on Peach's part," said Popo. "But for Link, I think we can say that he's trying to do something to him."

"Right," said Young Link. "But the strange thing is that I've seen all of the things Ganondorf did to Hyrule. I myself can tell you that it wasn't pretty. But after that story-telling session, I myself am finding something about him that wasn't there before…"

"You think he's trying to change?" asked Popo.

"Yes," said Young Link. "I don't know why, but it looks like he's trying."

"Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I don't think that Link is helping out at all," said Nana.

"I don't think so either," said Ness. "I mean, honestly. If you keep pelting the same sayings at a man who's trying to change away from those sayings, then you aren't helping him at all."

"I know," said Popo.

"I guess that's all that we have leads on," said Nana. "With everything else, I'm clueless."

"I'm going to go along and trust my experiences with them as my main guide," said Ness. "After all, what others say may not be completely correct."

"I agree," said Popo. "Oath of the clique?"

"Oath of the clique," said the other three, who then came together in the center of the room, joined hands, and began a sort of ritualistic dance that would end the meeting.

* * *

The mess hall was mostly unoccupied.

However, three souls were currently discussing something over an empty table.

The three souls in question were Bowser, Ganondorf, and Marth, and they were talking about the fact that Link was saying that the king of the Gerudo tribe had cheated and was constantly expounding on it. This was getting all three of them fairly disturbed (especially Ganondorf), but no matter what they said, they were always countered with something.

"Well, of course I have gone over there and told them what a blatant lie it is," said Ganondorf. "But they never believe me at all. With the rate I am going, I might never get them to believe me at all."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that, man," said Bowser. "I mean, keep at it and maybe everybody will realize that you are telling the truth. Truth by repetition, you know?"

"I am aware of that," said the Gerudo king. "But Link is the most popular man in this tournament, and he is the one who is constantly expounding on it. Who do you think the masses will believe; an obscure man who is supposedly evil, or a popular man that has saved people countless times?"

"I wouldn't be too sure of that," said Marth. "After all, sometimes the popular people who suppress somebody else are the ones that end up getting in a worse state than the ones they try to oppress."

"And how would you know that?" asked Ganondorf.

Marth dipped his head down in his typical gesture that he did not want to talk about it.

Ganondorf and Bowser looked at each other upon seeing this. Bowser gestured at Ganondorf that the king of the Gerudo tribe should talk to the young prince to see what was up with the fact that Marth never talked about certain things.

"You know, Marth, you usually have a lot to say, and yet when I ask how you know that, you back away from it as if it never existed," said Ganondorf.

"I simply do not want to talk about it," said Marth. "Is there anything incorrect with that?"

"If it is something that hurts you deeply, it is," said Ganondorf. "It is harmful because the knowledge festers in you, and then it can manifest itself in a very harmful manner."

"I still do not want to talk about it," said Marth. "I'd rather have the knowledge fester than let people know about it."

"And why would that be?" asked Ganondorf.

"That, I cannot say without sounding prideful," said Marth. "Now if you will excuse me, I feel a need to take a walk outside to clear my head."

With this, Marth left the group.

When the prince had left, Ganondorf looked towards his large reptilian friend.

"Why the hell is he letting this unspeakable stuff fester?" asked Bowser.

"I have no real inclinations as to why, my friend," said Ganondorf.

"I know," said Bowser.

"How are the children behaving to you?" asked the Gerudo king.

"They still like me," said Bowser. "Even through all the slander that Peach has talked about me, they still trust me. I even have the feeling that Popo looks up to me as a father of some sort. You know?"

"Yes," said Ganondorf. "I'm going to find Marth. I want to let him know that he can trust me."

"Because you trust him too, right?" asked Bowser.

"Yes," said Ganondorf. He stood up from the chair after this. "I guess I will be seeing you sometime later than. Good day to you."

"Good day to you, my friend," said Bowser.

The Gerudo king left the mess hall.


	7. Chapter 7: Character Studies Phase One

Hey, all. I got this one finished so I could let you all know that _Hansel and Gretel_ went really well. The orchestra did a good job, the singers did a good job, and everything else about the production was good too. It's kind of hard to see it go after two performances, but eh, that's life.

Anyways, I'm doing an AU take on Link that I think I should have mentioned earlier. And trust me, if you don't freakin' _hate_ the guy after this chapter, I'm at a loss to tell you otherwise. Of course, you can still like him elsewhere, but here, I'm not inclined to think so.

So yeah. You know the rest.

I wanted this author's note to be longer, but for some reason I flashed to the C2 list while writing this. Isn't that one of the most annoying things in the world?

But I digress. Here's the next chapter.

* * *

Chapter 7: Character Studies, Phase 1

The Altean Prince sat on a bench with his hand on his face.

He knew that he could not bring himself to tell any of them the truth. If he did, then he knew that his reputation as being one of the more popular men of the tournament would change to the point that nobody would talk to him.

Besides, who was a prince to say that the decisions of others forced him to end up where he was?

Marth thought about his father and how much of a hypocrite the man was. He had told many of the wisdoms that Marth knew, yet he publicly violated all of them whenever he had the chance. The worst part for Marth was that everybody gave no heed to the double-sidedness of his father's personna.

The young prince seemed to be the only one who would pick up on such a thing, but nobody ever listened to him. Whenver he did say it to his father's face, he would somehow find himself locked up in a cellar of some peasant's house. This made Marth hate him quite a bit, and over the years he came to defy his father at every turn.

Of course, this soiled his reputation with other people as well; it eventually caused his friends to leave him, and it also caused many royals within his own court to distrust him.

Eventually, however, the truth came out with an effort from Marth; the king had told them that an invading army was coming in to attack, and then Marth found his opportunity to expose his hipocrisy when he failed to follow up to his promise to end the threat. In the end, Marth disobeyed his father's orders to help just to make a point about how hypocritical that man was.

And they took the point away. Peasants refused to listen to him after that, and many began to dissaprove of him.

However, he did not count in the fact that his father would be so infuriated he would be willing to do anything to get his own son out of his sight forever.

And because of all of that, Marth had gotten to where he was.

Not that he wasn't gratefull he was there. After all, he had made a few new friends at this place who seemed to listen to all of the wisdoms he gave.

For Marth, though, it was the bitterness of the whole affair that made him angry. It was the bitterness towards his father, who constantly violated his own truths. It was bitterness towards his mother, who did not live long enough to constantly remind him to live up to his oftentimes blank promises. It was bitterness towards his friends, who spoke sweet phrases yet backed away when he told them things. It was bitterness towards his countrymen for not realizing that perhaps the young prince had a point. It was bitterness that fueled his anger towards those in his old country.

Marth did not want to say any of this to anybody, for he knew that besides leaving him, they would begin festering a bitterness towards something.

The last thing the young prince wanted was for somebody else to go through what he did.

Marth's train of thought was interrupted as he heard footsteps approach. He turned to see Ganondorf walking up to him.

"Why, hello," said Marth. "What are you doing here?"

"Listen, Marth, you've been hiding these things you do not wish to speak of since the start of the tournament, yes?" asked Ganondorf.

"Ganondorf, can you not respect other's privacy for once?" asked Marth. "I do not want to talk about it."

"Minding your business is better than leaving it alone to burst," said Ganondorf. "Please, Marth. Letting the thoughts out is better than keeping them in."

"Well, I prefer to keep my thoughts to myself," said Marth. Ganondorf apparently did not want to notice the anger rising in the prince's voice.

"But Marth, you really should –"

"I wish not to talk about it!" snapped the young prince.

There was a slight pause in the conversation.

"Alright then," said Ganondorf. "Have it your way."

The king came closer to Marth and put a hand on his shoulder.

"But let me tell you this," said Ganondorf. "If there is anything you want to talk about, you can talk to me. You listen to me when I speak, so it is only fair for me to do the same to you."

Ganondorf's hand departed from its spot on Marth's shoulder.

"With that, I will wish you a good day," said the king.

He left without saying another word.

* * *

Link sat down on the couch in the match lounge, with the screen black as if to help him with his thoughts.

Somebody had ratted the information that Link had given about Ganondorf to Master Hand, and he had made an announcement the day before that there was no evidence of cheating. Of course, Link pointed out that a masking magic could have been used and that Ganondorf more than anybody could have done it, but then the hand countered by saying that Zelda could have done it as well, and that she had no reason to let Ganondorf win. Which meant that it was safe to assume that what he said was a lie.

Link knew this did not help his reputation any.

_That damn Ganondorf is always attempting to soil my reputation_, thought Link. _Well, tough. The more he messes with my reputation, the worse I will make him look._

And Link of course knew he would follow up to this promise.

After all, the incident almost did reveal the dishonesty of his tactics to win the tournament.

Link was so popular people failed to notice that his match with Popo had gone by a little too quickly to be true. The Hylian had also told Samus not to tell anybody so Ganondorf could suffer in silence.

However, the young Hylian had a different reason for hiding the mass lie he had told.

It was because he himself was employing cheating in hopes of winning the tournament. No matter what happened, he had a resolve to win the tournament and look good to everybody, even if he had to resort to dishonest methods to do so.

In fact, he had been cheating the entire first tournament as well. Link probably would not have gotten to the final match if it was not for the fact that he had constantly been hacking the code the nights before his matches. At first, it was a little hard to do, seeing as he had no technical knowledge, but he improved as the tournament went on, and by the start of the second tournament, he had gotten good enough that he could control each person's match. The young man smirked as he thought about how Captain Falcon lost the first match of the tournament; he had enough gall to say disrespectful things about Link, and thus Link had hacked the code to give Samus twice as much power as she normally had.

And Link felt he could not stop cheating. Once he had started, he found the notion of winning without work to be too tempting. Therefore, he constantly went back to the same monitor in the same office to ensure that he would make it to the final match.

He especially wanted to look good for Zelda. True, they had been in a relationship for the longest time, but Link wanted it to go to the next step sometime soon; he was getting ready to propose to her.

Of course, Zelda was royalty, which meant that any proposal to her meant that you instantly acclaimed the spot of king of Hyrule. And that was why Link wanted to get Zelda to love him in the first place.

He wanted to be king becaused of the attention it garnered him.

Attention was all Link wanted from anybody; he yearned to be known by everybody. He had been vastly unappreciated as a boy living in Kokiri Woods, and when he became king of Hyrule, they would beforced to know who he was, whether the inhabitants of Hyrule desired it to be so or not.

Attention was also why he was the only one daring enough to save Hyrule in the first place; half of Link's life was playing the role of con man while having enough evidence to back this conning of the people. True, he did have the Triforce of Courage, but Hero of Time he was definitely not. He had mastered magic of all sorts, and he had mastered it enough so that he could leave an energy signature equal to that of the Hero of Time so he could get the Master Sword out of the stone.

Therefore, he was used to manipulating people so he could get the desired attention out of them. He was also quite good at it, and thus one could detect no hint of deception in his eyes whenever he stated that he was the Hero of Time.

Thus, Link's life was full of deception; he used it to get people to like him just because he loved the feeling of having everybody's eye on him.

Link got up with a smug smile on his face and went to the mess hall to eat.


	8. Chapter 8: Revelations

Hello, all. Herr Wozzeck is here again with another chapter in this ongoing saga.

Remember when I said that I would go semi-AU with Falcon's past? Well, you read about it here. And ít's purely my take: if everyone's favorite F-Zero pilot has a past in the F-Zero games, it will definitely be different from this one.

And unfortunately, tomorrow ends spring break. Oh well. I had a semi productive break this time, right?

And I guess I've made a lot of people dislike Link! I guess my mission has been accomplished. So yay me!

I've been getting so many anonymous reviews that it's been hard to reply. If you're going to leave an anonymous review, fine, but if you could leave an e-mail address so I can contact you later that would be very convenient on my part.

And I'll give you the next chapter! Enjoy!

(H.W. runs from the angry Link fangirls.)

* * *

Chapter 8: Revelations

Ganondorf sat in his room, thinking about Marth and his secrecy.

The king sighed as he thought of the massive internal battle he was having inside due to his holding of his feelings towards something. Ganondorf knew better than anybody else that an internal battle was always easier when you had input from somebody else. However, Marth failed to see that, and thus he always kept his feelings to himself.

The Gerudo king shook his head, feeling bad for whatever happened to Marth. He was sure of exactly one thing; if he was not talking about it, it must have been something quite unpleasant that happened.

As this thought left his mind, he heard the door open.

"Hiya, Ganondowf," said the voice of Captain Falcon.

"Hello," said Ganondorf. "Can I ask you something?"

Captain Falcon went to his desk and put his helmet on it.

"Show," said Captain Falcon. "Ask meh aynythin' ya want."

"If something unpleasant happened to you, would you be free to talk about it?" asked Ganondorf.

There was a slight pause as Captain Falcon looked at Ganondorf with disbelief on his face.

"Whah would ya ask somethin' lahke thayat?" asked the captain.

"Because Marth keeps his lips sealed whenever he's asked about what happened to him in his childhood."

Captain Falcon nodded his head and thought about what Ganondorf said for a few seconds.

After a minute or two, the captain cleared his throat.

"If ah diydin't want ta tawk abaout aynythin' unpleyasant, ah would beh in the clowset," said the captain.

"In the closet?" asked Ganondorf. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"It meyans ah wouldn't beh runnin' around sahyin' ah was gay," was the response.

Ganondorf nodded.

"I see," said Ganondorf. "Where does your free expression come from?"

"Mah uncle would alwahys teyell meh thayat I liyived in a freh countreh," said the Captain. "So lawng as ya did what wayas good accowding ta theh law, you could sahy whateyever ya wownted ta sahy."

"I think I know the rest," said Ganondorf. "You know, you never say much about your past."

"Ah nevah sahy mah compleyete history unleyess ah'm asked," said the Captain. "Ah don't wownt ta impoyose mah history on owhta's, ya know?"

"Yes," said Ganondorf. "You mind telling me about It right now? I am interested in knowing where you come from and what gives you such a loud persona."

"Show," said Captain Falcon.

And then, he began the long narrative of his life.

Captain Falcon had been born Douglas Jay Falcon to a struggling couple in the middle of a huge economic depression in Georgia in a country that Ganondorf was unfamiliar with. He had then lived much of his life in the streets, where he picked up his somewhat bizarre accent. He had family that the group would sometimes go to, but they usually lived in poor settings as well; Captain Falcon remembered that the settings in question were called "Hoovervilles", and that it was where almost everybody else lived. It so happened that over time he found himself feeling strange feelings towards men, and that was when he realized he was a homosexual. Ganondorf already knew about his parents reactions, so the only thing the captain needed to tell him was that he ran away.

The F-Zero pilot had been wondering the country side for seven years since, and he had grown to be a somewhat large young man (which was pretty strange given the fact that he begged his life away). Around this time, he came across a strange object as he wondered the town of Marietta, Georgia. When he touched this strange object, he found himself in an alleyway somewhere. He emerged from this alleyway to find himself in a futuristic place. Instantly, a kind old woman found him standing there, bewildered and lost, and thus she took him in and kept him company throughout this transition.

Eventually, he discovered F-Zero; this was a racing tournament in which one would jump into a spacecraft and race to win a prize. He became interested, and signed on with an agent under the name "Captain Falcon".

And then, he came to love the F-Zero championships. He met many through these tournaments, and he was able to escape the poverty of his old life.

Within a year or two of racing, he became known as one of the best racers on the circuit. This ultimately led to an invitation to the first Super Smash Brothers tournament. Even though he lost miserably in the first round, he had found more people that accepted him.

And through all of that, he had wound up to where he was.

The narrative finished there.

Ganondorf looked at the captain with wonder in his eyes, wondering how he had managed to keep track of everything in his life.

"How do you manage to keep track of all of that?" asked Ganondorf.

"Ah maynage, ah gueyess," said the captain. "Heow ah maynage is somethin' ah mahself don't knouw."

"Oh well," said Ganondorf. "I know what you mean."

The captain nodded as he settled into his own bunk.

* * *

Peach was sitting in the meeting room. There was nothing going on there, but she felt a need to be alone for a few minutes.

She needed to clear her head up after some things; Mario had gotten into a large argument with his brother Luigi over something that she did not quite understand. They were rooming together, their dorm was next door to hers, and they were yelling so loudly that it was a wonder the hall did not crumble to pieces. She wanted to storm in there and scream at them to stop arguing and just be the brothers that they were born to be, but she knew it was not behavior meant for a princess.

So she went downstairs to have peace and quiet to think about something she could say to both of them about the fact that they should not be arguing as often as they were. After all, they were brothers, and brothers were sometimes the closest people in the world to each other. Peach wanted to see their siblinghood as such, and she would go to any lengths to make it so.

"Hey Peach! What are you doing here?"

The statement caused Peach's train of thought to crash, and thus she turned her head towards the door to see Nana and Young Link there.

"Young Link, I need time to think," said Peach as calmly as she could. The surprise still showed in her voice however.

"Still, it's better to get somebody else's point of view first," said Nana.

"I know that," said Peach. "But I don't think I can get a second view of Mario and Luigi's arguing!"

"Ask anybody else who's noticed it," said Young Link.

"But who specifically?" asked Peach.

"Well, you could ask Bowser," said Nana.

Peach was supremely surprised that her worst nightmare would be the person that Nana would say first.

"Why do you mention him first?" asked Peach. "I'm not sure he would be so willing to help…"

"Are you kidding me?" asked the young green-clad boy. "He'd give you help when you ask for it and no later!"

"But I don't understand," said Peach. "I thought he kidnapped people, and—"

"Kidnapped?" asked Nana. "Peach, you haven't seen the rest of it! He's so nice to us it's a wonder you ever accuse him of the things you do!"

"Yeah!" said Young Link. "He plays games with us, he tells us stories, and if we're really good, he takes us out to do things!"

"I can't believe you say stuff about kidnapping!" said Nana. "Come on, Young Link. Let's go!"

The boy nodded, and the two left together.

The princess pouted for a few minutes, but then a new thought came in her head.

She had always accused Bowser of being a man with no morals over the fact that he would constantly kidnap people just to get what he wanted. She had always assumed that it was the pleasure of getting whatever he wanted that drove him.

However, the princess had never really cared for herself if there was anything else there; she never thought of possible motives Bowser might have for incessantly kidnapping somebody. She also never thought if there was anything redeeming about Bowser.

But what Nana and Young Link had just said placed a curiosity there that she never had before.

She realized that perhaps she did not know everything with those comments. She realized that perhaps she had been soiling his reputation without being aware of it.

And so, she decided that she had to find out exactly who Bowser was. Not the Bowser of the kidnappings and amoral acts, but the Bowser that she never realized was standing right in front of her the entire time.

With this in mind, the young princess put the two brothers at the back of her mind and left the meeting room to seek out Bowser's location.

* * *

"I would not understand, however."

"How would you not understand?"

"The witch that cursed us said that nothing could bring us back from this state, and yet you say it's reversible?"

"If we have the right kind of magician, it is reversible."

The two hand siblings and Zelda had been discussing the curse that had turned the two people into large hands. When they had been cursed, the witch said that it was irreversible. However, Zelda had done a full magic scan on the said curse, and she found it was reversible if somebody had the right magic.

"Still, I don't understand…" said Crazy Hand.

"I guess she was trying to keep you from having any hopes that somebody would come along and save you from this condition?" asked Zelda.

"Could very well be…" said Master Hand.

"What were the circumstances that turned you into what you are anyways?" asked the princess.

"Well, my father was an infamous bounty hunter," said Master Hand. "One day, this witch that cursed us somehow wound up on the list of 'Most Wanted Individuals' and so he went to get her. In the hopes that we would follow in his footsteps, he brought us along."

"And it all fell apart from there," said Crazy Hand. "My father was wounded very badly, but somehow we were the ones who barely managed to capture her. So when we turned her in to the guild of bounty hunters, she shouted a few things at us…"

"And the next day we woke up looking like this," said Master Hand.

"And that's why you formed the tournament," said Zelda. "What do you think the witch excelled in?"

"Dark arts, I believe," said Crazy Hand.

"Well, then what you have to do is that you have to find a dark magician," said Zelda.

"Why?" asked Crazy Hand. "I promised myself that I would never approach one in my life, ever again!"

Zelda shook her head and randomly grappled herself to Crazy Hand's wrists.

"Because a dark magician knows the tricks to reversing their own spells," said Zelda.

"Yes, but Zelda, who in the dark arts would want to use such a reversal?" asked Master Hand.

"A dark magician with good intentions, that's who," remarked the princess quite bluntly. At this point, she let go of Crazy Hand, who then shook herself a little bit (it is difficult for giant hands to touch their wrists when the two fingers at the end are too short and do not have the joint capacity to do so) before continuing the conversation.

"But where will we find that…?" asked Crazy Hand.

"You can find one somewhere," said Zelda. "I would suggest sending out a notice to all the dark magicians with good intentions asking if they could devote a minute of their time to help you."

"I think that is a good idea," said Master Hand. "You may leave, Zelda."

"Glad to be of help," said Zelda with a nod.

She then left the office.

"Should we start with the smashers?" asked Master Hand to his sister.

"Of course," said Crazy Hand. "Why?"

" I was thinking we could start with Ganondorf…"


	9. Chapter 9: Nebenstimme

Hello, all. Herr Wozzeck here.

I just came out of a two-gig week here; first was the concert for the people who won my school's concerto competition (which I lost B.T.W.), and then my school had to go play for a dinner with some high-profile people yesterday. Former Vice President Al Gore was supposed to be in the audience for the latter, but he was a no-show for some reason.

Oh, and I was also at a Steve Reich concert on Wednesday where he was operating the soundboard in some of the pieces. It would have been cool, but he held a lecture at the nearby university that I wanted to go to but couldn't because of the dinner performance.

And trust me, I do not like dinner performances, mostly because nobody's actually paying attention unless you're so loud the tables are vibrating. Which, unfortunately, is not something that can be achieved by a 58-piece school orchestra.

You know the rest.

But I digress.

You remember me saying stuff about how Roy is in love with Zelda here, right? Well, something's going to happen to him in relation to link that I hope will make you feel bad for him and make you hate Link more than you already do.

And if you don't get the chapter's title, it's part of a serial-type thing I'm doing to hopefully organize this for you better. In the majority of the music written by the Second Viennese School, there exists a system of brackets and capitalized H's and N's that is supposed to help the conductor figure out where the melody is and stuff. This chapter, along with the next one are named after this convention. In this case, the Nebenstimme is the counterpoint to the main voice (the Hauptstimme is the main voice and will be explored in the next chapter), and thus minor things will start here.

Here's the next chapter.

Enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 9: Nebenstimme

Peach looked outside of the window that looked out towards the garden.

Occupying the garden was a group; Popo, Nana, Ness, Bowser, and Link's younger self all occupied the garden in a dominating way.

And by dominating, the princess observed that the group was exploiting the nature of the garden for whatever fanciful purpose suited their prancing about the foliage and the fountains of the garden. The group was playing a game of some kind that the princess could not seem to figure out, but whatever game it was, it did involve quite a bit of abusive behavior on the part of the earth they were running on.

This game involved quite a bit of tackling on the part of the children. Everybody was running around, jumping over the bushes whenever the opportunity presented itself. Whenever one person got too close to another person, the two of them were always in a laughing fit on the floor afterwards, usually with one on top of the other. Whatever the game was, it did seem a little violent.

At first, she noticed the Koopa king run around and fall over with the children in a heap. At first, she figured this would be a hazard to the children.

However, after he fell down several times, the princess noticed that the king was always allowing himself to be tackled by one of the children instead of tackling one of his smaller playmates as she had figured he would do.

For Peach, this implied a great many things. It implied genuine concern for others as well as concern for the welfare of children. It also implied a lot of careful planning for when the children would gather so that he could crush them all.

However, the game kept going, and the children were still running.

Finally, they all disappeared, leaving Bowser in a somewhat perturbed state once it settled in that they were hidden.

He began to look around frantically, searching for signs of the children. Genuine concern really did show when he began to ask weakly for the children.

With this, Peach seemed to silently dispel any tales of violence waiting to happen. She noticed by Bowser's concern that the king must have had a sense of worry that would get him out of any good mood quickly.

And then, the children yelled as they tackled the king at the same time and sent them to the floor. All of the kids were on Bowser's plastron laughing their heads off.

After a while, Bowser began to laugh as well.

The laughing told Peach a story of friendship and love, all compacted into one small gesture. The universal nature of the laughing told her of group of children who loved the man they had been playing with over the course of several minutes. This told a tale of a Bowser who cared for others as much as he cared for whatever reason he kidnapped the princess time and time again.

Peach had seen enough. She knew that Bowser was definitely not as barbaric as she had made him out to be, and she felt embarrassed that she had assumed too much and spread the word about this assumption that was not correct.

She stood up from her chair and left the room to think about her next step in her little scheme of finding out the kind of person that Bowser was.

* * *

"Well, I would not be so sure about that, Captain." 

"Whah nowt?"

"I do not prefer to walk around and allow men to stare me down because they want to victimize another unfortunate soul. I mean, sure, go ahead and talk to me, but please, the last thing I would want anybody to do would be to pull me over into an apartment to be penetrated by whatever the men have in their pants."

"Ah understayand, doctah, but whah iyis iyit wiyith yow clowseted nayature if ya teyell ever'body but yer own broyother?"

"Captain, did you hear how loudly Mario yelled at Luigi yesterday? Why, somebody who lived in another universe would probably have heard the commotion caused by his voice! Mario's problem is that he cannot stand homosexuals to be anywhere within ten feet of him. Do you know how frustrating it must be for him to have his own brother be homosexual?"

"Yeah, buyut it's not lahke Luigi woyould juyust jump in beyed with his own siyibling. Moyost peyople doyon't commiyit inceyest, and thayat's a proveyen fayact."

"Mario certainly seems to see it that way."

Captain Falcon had been conversing with Dr. Mario quite a bit. They had been talking about homosexuality and its effects on various people. The doctor admitted to his own sexuality in front of Falcon, but he made the captain swear not to tell anybody, least of all Mario. Falcon had figured Dr. Mario would be more open about it, but then the doctor had explained his closeted nature in that Mario was afraid of being around homosexuals.

In fact, this was what the argument between Mario and his other brother Luigi had been about the previous day; Luigi had admitted to Mario that he was a homosexual, and Mario exploded in anger so badly that Luigi left the room with a saddened mindset and a resolve to commit suicide. In fact, if Roy had not been the one to talk Luigi out of such an attempt, Luigi surely would have wound up dead at Mario's doorstep.

"Ah know thayat," said the captain. "Fow meh, though, ah would've beyen nahcer to Luigi."

"Well of course you would have," said Dr. Mario. "You are a homosexual and you are probably the person who is least afraid of saying it."

"Yeah, buyut ah would've tahken theyer mahndset into accoyount befow ah said suyuch things," responded Captain Falcon.

"I see," said the doctor. "You really do seem to care more for people than you let on."

"Ah knoyow," said the F-Zero pilot. "Eyeven theh lahdies are suprahsed wheneyever ah doh somethin' for theyem, giveyen the fayact that ah tahke interest in meyen."

"That will come in handy much later in life," said Dr. Mario.

The captain nodded in response.

"You know, now that I have been able to talk to you about certain things, I do feel a certain pride in getting to know who you are," said Dr. Mario.

"Fow real?" asked the captain.

"Yes," said the doctor.

"Whah, thayank you," said Falcon somewhat sheepishly. "Nobowdy's ever sayad anything lahke thayat tah meh."

"You're welcome, captain," said Dr. Mario. "Now, if you will excuse me, I need to run an inventory check on my medical supplies. You never know when circumstances force you to check on a fellow competitor."

"Show," said the captain.

Dr. Mario left the room the two souls had been conversing in.

* * *

He could not have her. 

Roy thought about this in his bed as he allowed a blackened eye to heal.

The Pherean prince wanted to cry. He could not believe Link would lower himself to such depths as he had when he had made the decision to assume too much and thus hurt Roy.

On top of it all, the young prince was unable to bear the injustice of the affair that had just come to pass.

It had started as a normal day in the mansion. Roy had somehow found Zelda, and the two had conversed rather strangely. Zelda was constantly reprimanding Roy's every move so often and with such wit that the prince could not help but laugh at several points of the conversation. But overall, it had been a nice long conversation.

It had been nice, at least until Link came in.

Zelda had stopped talking and said the Hylian man's name.

And after that, Link went crazy on the Pherean prince. Link had begun yelling at Roy, and then this eventually turned into a huge fistfight that caught everybody's attention. Poor Roy had gotten beat by Link very badly, and no matter what Zelda did to try to break up the fight, she failed miserably.

When it was all over, Link and Roy were both sitting in Master Hand's office with bruises imprinted on their skin. Roy had been feeling very nervous about sitting in the hand's office for the reasons that he had stated it was forbidden, and so he sat there and told his story.

And then Link had stood up and related a pack of lies one would have called a fairy tale. The young Hylian had stated a whole bunch of lies about how Roy had been jealous over Zelda and that Roy was trying to kill Link so he could have Zelda for himself.

The gloved hand decided to put his trust in Link and told Roy that he was no longer a part of the tournament and that he could not stay in the mansion for another second. Visits were allowed, but he could not stay in the mansion overnight.

The worst thing was that Roy was too shocked to defend himself; everything he said after this shocking sentence came out as a stutter, and thus he was unable to make his point clear. Thus, Link was able to get away with all of the lies.

People had tried to help keep Roy in the mansion and the tournament. Zelda was yelling out that what her boyfriend had told the hands was false, and both Marth and Captain Falcon were pouring out ideas that Roy was not the kind of person to pick fights over love.

Of course, it was all overlooked, and the order still held.

Roy would leave the mansion the next morning, leaving Marth alone and a passion for Zelda unrequited.

Link's actions had angered Roy beyond words. After all, Link had been the one who had started the entire affair, and for the prince it was stupid and extremely self-centered of the Hylian to do what he did. Because of what had transpired, Roy wanted to walk right up to Link and yell all the insults that he knew for sure existed.

In the end, though, Roy was unable to do it, mostly because he was unable to bring himself to stand up for what was right.

With a heavy pain in his heart, Roy waited restlessly for the hour that would undoubtedly come.


	10. Chapter 10: Hauptstimme

Hello, all. Major revelations on the platter today.

As I said in the A/N of my last chapter, this will be the head voice and it will cover most of the major stuff.

And Marth finally says stuff! If you remember the summary back in chapter seven, I cut it off at the part where it said that his father would do anything to get revenge, right? That was important!

And finally you get the hands in their human forms. I plan to go into further detail in regards to their appearance, so stay tuned for that.

I don't really have much else to say, except I was at the premier of the world premier of David Carlson's new opera _Anna Karenina _that was commisioned by the local opera company! I feel like partying, but unfortunately the world doesn't seem to care much about contemporary music...

You know the rest.

Here's the next chapter!

* * *

Chapter 10: Hauptstimme

"Listen, Link, I cannot believe you would go to such lengths because you are jealous of him!"

"Zelda, he could have done things to you! I'm just making sure that you're safe from him!"

"He hasn't tried to do anything! What makes you think that just talking is a sign that I'm falling in love with somebody else?"

"It's not that I'm worried about you being unfaithful. I'm just worried that he might do something to you!"

"That would have happened over my grave! Now stop your false talk and admit that you started it all!"

"Why should I? I won't look good to anybody if I do, least of all you!"

"You've impressed me a lot already! And you'll impress me even more the minute you stop telling these lies and face the truth!"

"No! They've already passed judgment, and why should I be one to reverse it?"

"You're being unreasonable! They might even give you a levee if you told the truth! They just might!"

"Forget it! I'd rather die than tell the truth now!"

"Fine! Be unreasonable like that! There are times that I wished you never existed!"

"Hey! I said that if you left the relationship, you would wake up the next morning with a knife in your throat! I'm about ready to follow up on that!"

"…"

"I thought so too. Now if you're ready to stop bickering and be a good girlfriend, the door is right there for you to go through."

"Whatever!"

Angry steps were heard on the carpet underneath, shortly followed by the slam of a door as an enraged Hylian princess walked out of Link's room.

Zelda made a heavy exhalation as she thought about how unreasonable Link was with regards to the whole situation. She and Roy had just been talking, and Link decided to throw a fit over it just because he was claiming to be scared about Zelda's health. The princess knew she had nothing to fear in regards to Roy, mostly because he did not seem to be the kind of person who would go all over the place and do it with whoever he pleased.

This was what annoyed the princess the most about Link. He was usually quite reasonable, but when it came to her, he was capable of jumping all over the place in paranoia. Whenever this happened, a rift in their relationship would usually be formed, only to be mended by intimidation.

Apparently, intimidation was Link's favorite weapon when dealing with a possible leave on his relationship. Zelda had grown tired of it and knew he would never bring himself to follow up; in fact, just to make sure he would not follow up with his threats, she pretended to believe in his threat and would be silent every time he threatened her with death so that he would shut up and let the princess continue with her life.

Eventually, though, she knew the relationship would mend itself as time went on. They would be in love as much as they had been before the argument.

Still, Zelda could not shake the feeling that it would cause irreversible damage to the relationship. Roy had seemed like a good person, despite the fact that he was really capable of acting like a child sometimes, and it would be a shame to see him go.

Zelda sighed again and went to her own room to think.

* * *

"I tell him… I tell him not… I tell him… I tell him not… I tell him…"

The young Altean prince was normally one to keep his past to himself, mostly because of the bitterness and the paranoia that all of his friend would leave him exactly the way his friends in Altea left him.

However, after what Ganondorf had told him in the garden the other day, Marth had begun to have doubts about whether holding it all in was really useful. And it had nothing to do with his argument, either.

It was entirely in the proof that followed in which Marth began to see a light.

Since Ganondorf had been asking Marth about what he could not describe, he had been finding himself leaning towards and constantly suppressing violent impulses. The day before, Marth wanted to punch Link in the face for saying lies about Roy; however, he found himself using every inch of his will just to call him a liar that nobody should listen to.

This in turn led to plucking a sunflower that was growing in the garden and going to his room. It was a stupid game, really, but Marth could not make up his mind. Since this was true, he decided he'd let Mother Nature and luck help him with his decision.

And thus, he was sitting on his bed and plucking the sunflower pedals, and then disregarding the fluttering of the pedals as he told himself the same monotonous drone again and again:

"I tell him… I tell him not… I tell him…"

Slowly but ever so surely, the pedals were finding themselves on the floor after each intimate pluck of the pedal, and even then, the drone continued on. However, the final six pedals were reached.

"I tell him not…"

One pedal floated gracefully down.

"I tell him…"

A second pedal joined the first one as the two did a dance in the air.

"I tell him not…"

As the first two settled, a third one began a lilting dance downwards.

"I tell him…"

A fourth one sifted its way through the watery space that was the air.

"I tell him not…"

The fifth one began fluttering down, intertwining with the fourth pedal, and then the result was not unlike that of the first two pedals that fell.

"I tell him."

The final pedal fell, and then the stalk was discarded amidst the bed of pedals that had gathered as Marth exited the room to fulfill his promise to the plant that was lying amidst its pedals.

* * *

Ganondorf was sitting in the garden, pondering on certain things.

Marth had refused to tell the king about whatever had happened to him in his early years. In addition to this, Ganondorf was also constantly pressuring the prince to say something; however, his attempts to do so had proven futile over and over again.

However, there was something in Marth that Ganondorf noticed. He had noticed several minute struggles with his body and mind that others would have passed away as mere anger management. However, Ganondorf figured that Marth was about to burst because of his secret that he had held for so long.

This also brought about a noticeable change in the prince's mindset; he noticed that he had been thinking more often. Of what he was thinking was entirely up to the Gerudo tribesman's speculation, but Ganondorf had a feeling it had to do with Marth finally making right decisions.

A somewhat harsh padding interrupted him.

"Hello, Ganondorf," said a voice.

Ganondorf looked in the voice's direction and was quite surprised to find the two Hand siblings standing in front of him.

"Hello," said Ganondorf, attempting to hide his surprise as much as humanly possible. "What are you two doing here?"

"It is a long story…" said Crazy Hand. "We would like you to come to the office with us, please."

Ganondorf had a brief glimmer of fear inside. What if he had done something and he did not know it?

"No, you are not in trouble," said Master Hand. "We will explain once we get in the office."

"Ah," said Ganondorf. "I was worried there. Anyways, yes, I think we can talk in your office."

"Good," said Crazy Hand. "This way please."

The group proceeded to Master Hand's office.

Upon arriving there ten minutes later, Ganondorf sat in one of the chairs opposite Master Hand's own chair and watched as the two hand siblings stood in front of him.

"What brings me here?" asked Ganondorf.

"You understand things about the curse that put us in this form, correct?" asked Master Hand.

"Yes," said Ganondorf. "A witch casted it because of revenge and hatred, correct?"

"Yep," said Crazy Hand. "We have been told by Zelda that it is reversible, however."

"So it is not the permanent curse it used to be?" asked the Gerudo king.

"Exactly," said Master Hand. "She told us that anybody with magical ability would be able to remove the charm."

"And I was the first person that came to mind?" said Ganondorf. A hint of curiosity graced his voice.

"Yes," said Master Hand.

"I understand," said Ganondorf. "However, why did I come to mind?"

Master Hand physically fidgeted, but thankfully he was saved by his sister.

"We figured that a warlock such as you would be able to know the workings of dark magic," said the female hand as craftily as she was able to say. "After all, you did grow up with a practical knowledge of the magic, right?"

"Yes," said Ganondorf. "I understand fully. I need to think about the proper chant, though. It might take a while."

The hand's wrists ducked up and down in agreement as Ganondorf thought about the magic he should use.

Finally, he stood up off of the chair, walked up to the hands, and touched them in their wrists as they stood on their two longest fingers.

"Prepare," warned the warlock. "It will feel very awkward after I repeal the curse…"

Ganondorf then began a soft chant once the hands had approved.

"_Den kashkiley, toreka dereyo! Ah teshkarel, tergalitevol! Vireyagt! Viretelacousetel! Gorgetaya vinkt getal! Keromayatel poroteithela! Theragaieta duregataiyo! Gungela! Thire gungela! Gungela!"_

As the chant died away, a mystical circle of light crowded the space on the floor beneath the two hand siblings. Suddenly, a powerful beam of light shot up from the floor that covered the two animated gloves.

When the light faded, the hands were replaced by two very distinct people wearing white.

The first was a man. His black hair fluttered in the wind created by the circle of light. The other, a woman, had long red hair that whipped against the air.

When the light dissipated and left the office back in its original state of lighting, the two hand siblings opened their eyes to reveal a quartet of emeralds shimmering behind the eyelids.

The first thing the former hands did was to feel their skin. Their arms journeyed in wonder as they realized that the old curse had been broken, and they relished in this.

In their bewilderment, they looked at anything reflective they could find. They looked at mirrors, the glass of the picture frames, anything at all. And they all showed the same thing; two human siblings, being watched by a guardian who had turned them back to men.

Ganondorf closed his eyes and stood by the chairs with a contented smile showing on his face as he waited for the wonder and the bewilderment to fade.

* * *

**Two Hours Later…**

Marth had been searching everywhere to find the king of the Gerudo tribe, but no matter where he looked, he found himself unable to seek out the man.

For the young exile, it felt like Ganondorf was walking twenty yards ahead of him, peeking behind walls in an eternal game of hide and seek where the one who was it would eternally be unable to find the others and tag them before they reached home base.

Eventually, Marth gave up and decided he should head back to his room and try again the next day.

As he was about to step into his own dorm, however, he heard the door across the hall open. When he turned to look, Ganondorf had stepped out of his dorm.

"There you are!" exclaimed Marth quite exasperatedly. "I have been looking all over for you!"

Ganondorf halted his progress at the door, and he turned to face Marth.

"Where have you been?" asked the young prince.

Ganondorf closed the door behind him and walked up to Marth to continue the conversation.

"I was in Master Hand's office," said Ganondorf. "Or should I say Mr. Hand's office?"

A perplexed look gathered on the Altean prince's face.

"Are you implying something?" asked Marth.

"Yes," said Ganondorf. "They asked me to repeal the curse on their bodies."

"In other words, you turned them back into their human forms," said Marth.

Ganondorf nodded quite simply.

"I thought the curse could not be repealed," said Marth.

"From what I heard from them, Zelda told them otherwise," said the warlock. "Besides, if it could not be repealed, they would not be in their human forms, yes?"

"True," said Marth. "Anyways, I was hoping we could talk in private…"

"Finally coming out with your secret, yes?" asked Ganondorf, leaning in with a somewhat satisfied smile beaming on his face.

"I thought it over," said Marth.

_And I had to sell my masculinity to the flower pedals to help me,_ _too_, thought the prince with a tinge of bitterness running through the sentence.

"Good," said Ganondorf. "We can talk in my room?"

"Yes," said the prince.

Ganondorf nodded and went to the room across the hall and walked into his dorm with Marth trailing behind.

"So tell me," said Ganondorf. "What is this great story you keep yourself from telling?"

"Bear with me," said Marth. "It is very complex."

"Go on…" said the king.

"Well, my father was one of the worst hypocrites in the world," said Marth. "I will leave that part at that." Here, Ganondorf nodded to help Marth beat the uncertainty in his voice. "Anyways, I knew that he was a hypocrite the entire time he was ruling, and thus I would voice it very frequently. Nobody believed me, however…"

"And your friends and countrymen left your side," stated Ganondorf.

"Yes," said Marth. "Anyways, one day an enemy army invaded Altea. My father pledged to do something about it, but as usual he was untrue to his promise. However, I had an opportunity to expose him, and I did."

"People stopped believing him afterwards, I assume…" said Ganondorf.

"You assume correctly," said Marth.

"Then if that was it, then why are you hiding it to yourself?" asked the king.

"Ganondorf… It's not the full story," said Marth. "It is what happened afterwards that makes me not want to mention the whole thing."

Ganondorf's face etched a surprised furrow.

"And what is it that happened afterwards?" asked the Gerudo tribesman.

"I unintentionally got the people riled up…" said Marth. "They denounced the king because of what he did… And then… And then it happened."

"What happened?" asked Ganondorf.

"He trapped a group of seventy peasants in the market place of the castle town and ordered them to be slaughtered," said Marth.

Ganondorf's eyes went wide with shock.

Marth understood where Ganondorf was coming from. True, Ganondorf did commit acts of murder towards other people, but performing acts of terrifying genocide on his own people was something that the Gerudo king would not and never would consider.

"Are… are you serious?" asked Ganondorf.

"Yes," said Marth. "And then, he told his court I was the one who ordered the slaughter. It took no amount of extra convincing to get them to nearly kill me."

"So you had to exile yourself?" asked Ganondorf.

"Yes," said Marth. "I never want to talk about it… I know it is my fault that he did what he did… I can never forgive myself, and I am sure nobody else would forgive me."

"Marth!" exclaimed Ganondorf as he took hold of the prince's shoulders. "That is not true!"

"And why not?" asked Marth.

"Because you were not the one who decided to murder thousands of members of your own people!" said Ganondorf. "You were not the one who said that your son did it simply to exact revenge! You were not the one who decided to be hypocritical in the first place! Stop punishing yourself because of what others did to you and your people! It is not your fault!"

"But Ganondorf, I—"

"Marth, please!" exclaimed Ganondorf once more. "It is not your fault! You did what you did to prove a point, and in the end, that is the good that comes out of it. Never mind that it led to your father being vengeful and murdering his own people for a second. If it is a cause worth fighting for, then what is the use of regretting it later in life?"

Silence. Suddenly, Ganondorf noticed that the Altean prince was moved to tears.

It was then that Ganondorf realized that he had been yelling at the young prince.

"Marth?" asked the king.

"I have been a fool," said Marth as a solitary tear ran down his cheek. "I have been a fool…"

Ganondorf took Marth's shuddering frame into his arms and allowed the prince to cry on his shoulder.

Marth did not make any attempt to resist.

He knew that Ganondorf had been his only true friend in all of his life, for he would not have said such things otherwise.

The two stood in this way for what felt like an eternity, the assurance of knowing that they could always count on each other for comfort if there was anything awry in their lives dominating the tenderness of the gesture.


	11. Chapter 11: Développement de L’amour

Hello, all. A new chapter on your way.

Before I say anything else, I want to make one note: there is drug use in this chapter. (Crack, to be precise.) While I do sort of glorify its use, I do not in any way, shape, or form intend for you to go out there and start being crackheads. I use it simply as a device to develop character. Therefore, no going to the local crack dealer, m'kay?

That being said, finals are coming up pretty soon. You know the rest.

And here is the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 11: Développement de L'amour

Captain Falcon was sitting on a bench in the garden waiting on nothing in particular. For some reason, despite claiming to be one of the more masculine men in the tournament, he found something fascinating about flowers that he could not figure out.

Perhaps it was the inherent beauty that his early life had lacked. Perhaps it was the fragrant smell that such a small object could emit. Perhaps it was the colorful varieties of flowers that existed. Whatever it was that fascinated the pilot about flowers, he himself had no idea why.

The flower beds of the mansion's garden in particular were objects of interest to the man sitting in the bench. He wondered what species the flowers were since he marveled at the very neat arrangement of the colors. These colors formed various Super Smash Brothers Association emblems throughout the garden, and they even went so far as to display the emblems of the various competitors in the tournaments throughout the years, as testified by the triforce symbols and the mushrooms and the warp stars and the various other emblems employed by the smashers.

There were also individual dandelions and sunflowers growing within the brush of the garden as well, although these were the only flowers the smashers could pick. Why it was, Falcon could not register.

However, he felt that the flowers were the only beauty in his life.

Footsteps were heard interrupting Falcon's musing. He looked up to see Dr. Mario walking around the garden staring around at the foliage with a film of sadness on his face.

"Hello, Falcon," said the doctor.

"Hiya, doctah," said Falcon. "Iyis somethin' the mayater?"

"Why do you ask?" asked Dr. Mario.

"Becayas y'all loyook extreyemly unhayappy todah," said the captain.

"Well, it has something to do with Mario," said the doctor.

"Whayat diyid heh do noyow?" asked the captain.

"Luigi threatened suicide to Mario," said Dr. Mario. "Mario said that Luigi could burn in hell and the whole nine yards and he would not care a bit."

"Hoyow auwful!" said Falcon. "Do yah thahnk Louigi wiyill follow uyup on thayat?"

"Of course," said the doctor. "It scares me to think of what Luigi could do to himself."

"Iyis anybodeh doin'aynythin aboyout iyit?" asked the captain.

"Yes," said Dr. Mario. "A lot of people have condemned Mario's speech as being unfair towards his own brother. Heck, even Peach is getting angry at him for saying the things he does to Luigi."

"Ah woyoudn't beh suprahsed iyif Mahrio eyends uyup hurtin'hiyis own broyother iyin hiyis journeh ta eyend the lahves of people lahke us," said the captain.

"I would not be surprised either," said the doctor. "That is what scares me most about the whole ordeal. We all know Mario is homophobic. What would happen if it got out of hand?"

"Ah doyon't knoyow," said Captain Falcon.

At this point, Falcon felt the depressing talk of death should have stopped by then, so he decided to change topic.

"Yah heyard whayat happeyened ta the Hayand sibliyins, yah?" asked Falcon.

"I believe not," said Dr. Mario. "Nobody has cared to tell me about it."

"Weyell, Ganondowf tuyrned theyem bayack into humains," said the captain.

"Really?" said the doctor, amazement etching his face. "I wonder why…"

"He toyold meh whah," said the captain. "Ah royoom wiyith hiyim, ya know?"

"Yes," said the doctor. "I wonder how it will make the Gerudo look to others…"

"Thayat's somethein' in the bayack of hiyis mahnd," said the capitain. "Heh teyells meh thayat heh diyid iyit becayause theh ahsked, ayand thayat's ahll there iyis to it."

"I see," said Dr. Mario. "I wonder what is up with you right now."

"Ah'm fahn," said the captain. "Y'all?"

"I do not know…" said the doctor. "But thank you for asking."

"Y'all ahre weyelcome," said Falcon. "Ah'm goin' ta go ta my doyorm. See ya lahter."

Falcon stood up from the bench.

"See you later," said the doctor.

Falcon left the area.

* * *

A second meeting had been called between the children. As before, they sat in the match lounge waiting for things to commence. Young Link and Nana were playing a game of chess, and Popo was lost in thought. 

However, unlike the first meeting Ness would be absent. The young psychic was in attendance at a children's concert that a group of musicians was giving. From what Nana had heard, it was an all twentieth century program, and if anybody knew Ness better than Nana, then he would be jumping at the chance to hear things such as that since they were not performed very often. This was also proven by the fact that he would sometimes be listening to dissonant music whenever he was not playing with the other children.

"So now that we're here, let's get started," said Popo. "Nana, you agreed to inform Ness about what happens here, right?"

"Yes," said Nana.

"So, what are we here to talk about?" asked Young Link.

"There are things going on in Marth's room," said Popo. "I don't know what, but it's strange."

"What happened?" asked Nana.

"I was walking by it yesterday when I heard this strange moaning coming from the other side of the door," said the male Ice Climber. "Even stranger, I didn't see Link or Zelda anywhere."

"You think they were in the room?" asked Young Link.

"I think so," said Popo. "But what were they doing?"

"Do we even want to find out what they were doing?" asked Nana.

"I certainly do," said Popo.

"I don't know," said Young Link. "I really don't think we want to know what's going on…"

"You think we should set up a camera?" asked Nana.

"What are you suggesting?" asked Young Link.

"I'm suggesting we hide a camera somewhere in the room that activates whenever anybody walks in and stays in," said Nana.

"Good idea," said Popo. "I wonder where we can find an infrared sensor, though…"

"They sell them at the local pawn shop," said Young Link. "We could get Captain Falcon to buy us some infrared sensors since he knows the shopkeeper really well!"

"How do we contact him though?" asked Nana.

"We tell Bowser to tell Ganondorf to tell Captain Falcon," said Young Link. "You know how the two are good friends, right?"

"Yes," said Popo. "So we'll do that."

"Good," said Nana. "Ness should have a camcorder we could use. I'll ask him when he returns."

"Okay," said Popo and Young Link at the same time.

"I also wonder if people are in love…" said Nana.

"Why do you say that?" asked Popo.

"Think about it," said Nana. "A lot of people are starting to have more intimate conversations with each other. Do you ever think it's going that far?"

"Now that you mention it, I do see a lot of intimate conversation going around," said Young Link. "I think we're the only ones who are still talking together in a collective body…"

"I wonder if it will all play out in the Summer Festival…" said Nana.

"Summer Festival?" asked Young Link. "What's that?"

"Mr. Hand was talking about it yesterday, remember?" said Popo. "It's a festival celebrating the end of spring."

"Oh yeah!" said Young Link. "I can't believe I forgot about it…"

"I know," said Popo. "But in other news, I think we should wait to see what's going on there."

"Okay," said Nana and Young Link.

"Oath of the clique?" asked Popo.

"Oath of the clique," said Nana and Young Link.

They did their mandatory handshake and ran out of the room to accomplish what they agreed on.

* * *

Link felt pretty good. He had been places and done things, and he felt pretty good. 

The young Hylian was sitting on his bed, fresh off of a session of doing a many great things.

First, he heard that Ganondorf had transformed the Hand siblings into their human forms. This got him pretty angry, so he decided to go to the computer and hack into the systems just to see what would be up.

Hacking computers was a subject of interest to Link. He knew there were endless lines of code to decipher, and this helped calm his mood if nobody knew what he was doing. Whenever he deciphered something, he took notes in case he needed to hack into it during a match, and at the end of this particular session, Link had a lot of notes on how to wreak havoc on the security system. With these notes, the Hylian was pretty happy.

Next, he had talked to Samus, who agreed with Link that Ganondorf was trying to look good to everybody else. They decided not to fall for it, and so Link went away from that rather happily since he knew Samus was too blinded by bitterness to see anything else.

And then, he managed to do it to Zelda fairly recently. Link had stolen Marth's room (Marth was alone in his room and Roy would not be there to be angry at Link anyways) and used it to have sex with Zelda. She of course consented, given the fact that they were in love.

And that had felt very good. Link could hardly forget the warmth or the soft murmurs of pleasure that emanated in the air like a mist that never seemed to want to settle. He wished he could make love to anybody for eternity.

A combination of all these things lifted Link's spirits very excessively.

And what he was about to do would be sure to make him even happier.

He had a slip of paper in the palm of his hand. On this slip of paper was a dense pile of white powder that had been ground by a grinder that was now sitting on his desk. In his other hand was a cigarette lighter, flaming with its own blue and black patterns.

The young Hylian rolled up the paper, noticing the fact that some of the powder fell out of the ends of the new cylinder.

Link made a mental note to clean it up later, even though he knew he would forget in the ecstasy of what he would do.

He lit the cylinder, brought it up to his mouth, and inhaled.

From there, the faux hero knew it would only be a matter of time before the ecstasy settled in.

* * *

Peach kept a faithful eye on the king of the koopas as he ate and talked with his friends as she had been watching several days in a row. 

Usually, though, Peach was alone, so nobody really paid attention to her hawkish gaze on the king. Occasionally, Mario would walk over and provide company, but usually he left whenever Peach asked Mario to make up with Luigi. Peach felt that no matter what she could tell Mario, she knew that no emotional support would come from Mario. The princess figured she would have to come in with her own emotional support whenever she saw the green plumber next.

However, she knew where her priorities were, and she knew that it was in finding out exactly who Bowser really was.

As she thought about this, the one question which incessantly popped in Peach's mind was the question of why Bowser constantly kidnapped the princess in the first place. Bowser was a good man, no doubt, but Peach knew it would take major motivation for a good man such as Bowser to kidnap anybody, let alone a princess. He was certainly not aiming at marriage, since he never did attempt to get in the notary whenever he kidnapped her, so there had to be something more.

The layers of depth that suddenly appeared in Bowser's character startled the princess more than ever. Before Nana's unintentional revelation, Peach had been looking at Bowser as a two-dimensional person who was only willing to do evil. However, now he saw a man who was good at heart but tormented by something that must have caused a profound change in his mentality towards some people.

Of course, there was no way Peach was able to muster up the courage to ask the question that was pervading her thought every second of her life in the mansion. She knew that in a case such as the one presented to her that she could either get somebody else to ask him for her or talk her fright out with somebody else before finally asking him herself.

Both would take some waiting.

Therefore, all the princess could do was sit and wait for something else in Bowser's personality that would redeem him in the end.

* * *

"I wonder what you could have done with her…" 

"I let her live. She was too young to suffer the creed anyways. My people noticed the first signs of change right then, but most of them still believe I am selfish."

"Give them the time to adjust to your knew ideals, and they will eventually follow you."

"Is that some of your father's wisdom again?"

"For once, no. An old nurse of mine would tell me that whenever I would get angry at my own people for being slow to catch on to anything."

"I see. At least it was not given by the person who you would regret knowing over the course of your life."

"True, Ganondorf. Very true."

Ganondorf and Marth had been talking to each other almost every second of the day since Ganondorf had listened to Marth's story. Ganondorf figured that revealing that had been the gateway for a better friendship between the two. The Gerudo king figured it was because they had both learned to open up to each other to keep a strong friendship between the two royals.

The two of them had been conversing in the match lounge for what had been an hour. Ganondorf liked the conversation since Marth was now very honest about where he was coming from. This also caused Ganondorf to open up to the Altean prince, so the conversation was full of merriment and laughter.

"I wonder what would have happened if you had not left Altea," said Ganondorf.

"I would have been executed, that is for sure," said Marth. "I also would have never gone here and met any of you."

"Do you like it here?" asked Ganondorf.

"Oh yes," said Marth. "Everybody here is so friendly to one another. It almost seems like hatred is invisible."

"I would not know…" said Ganondorf. "You heard what is going on between Mario and Luigi, yes?"

"I have heard arguments through the walls," said Marth. "The poor man must be going through much pain to have his own brother yell at him like that."

"That is the thing that is scaring many people," said the Gerudo king. "The only people who are agreeing with Mario's position on the subject are Link and Samus, and even then Samus thinks that Mario is going a bit too far."

"I wonder if Luigi will follow up on his threats of suicide…" said the Altean exile.

"He might," said Ganondorf. "I have heard tales from Peach that he is one to follow up on his word. However, I believe that by not doing anything to help Luigi we would be partly at fault for Luigi's death."

"Indeed," said Marth. "In fact, I was thinking of going to him after this conversation is over."

"I was thinking of the same thing," said Ganondorf. "Poor Luigi could really use emotional support."

"Indeed," said Marth. "So should we both go?"

"Of course," said Ganondorf. The Gerudo king was sort of depressed at this point of the conversation, so he decided to change the topic. "Are you excited about the summer festival?"

"Certainly," said Marth. "I wonder who I can fall in love with by the time the festival comes around…"

The Gerudo king let out a long laugh before continuing with the conversations.

"Do you really believe you can fall in love within the small time frame of a week, my friend?" asked Ganondorf. "I do not think so. I have heard you can go with a friend, however."

"That makes things much easier then," said Marth. "I would simply go with you to the festival."

"Because I am a friend, correct?" asked Ganondorf.

"You are the first real one I have had in my life," said Marth. "Will you comply?"

"Of course," said Ganondorf.

"Good," said Marth. "I think we should go to Luigi's room now."

"Agreed," said Ganondorf.

The two royals proceeded to the door to get to Luigi's room.


	12. Chapter 12: Character Studies Phase Two

Aw, damn it! I forgot to mention that the last chapter's title was another musical reference!

Okay, so before I forget anything else, I'll get to that; the title of the last movement was the title of a movement of the Messaien orchestral work _Turangalîla Symphonie_, which deals with love such as the kind you run into in Tristan and Isolde-type situations. I might have another chapter titled after the symphony's title since this is basically playing on the same thing (i.e. love that some find unacceptable.). You know the rest.

So Ellulah, you asked for Mario and Luigi development, and you're getting Mario and Luigi development. I can't promise I'll do Samus some time soon since I don't have an opportunity anywhere else in the story for me to do so, but I'll get to it. Mario fans, you're getting a treat here, especially since I'm not planning on making Mario a bad person.

My last final exam was today, and school ends tomorrow. You know what that means, right? Summer's here! I'll try to get as much done as I can before June, though, since I'm gone on the last week of June and the entirety of July. See my profile for details.

And here is the chapter.

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 12: Character Studies Phase Two 

Mario was pacing in his room, thinking of many things. His gloved fingers toyed with a few stray locks of hair that worked their way under his red cap.

The Italian plumber thought he was very well-versed with how homosexuals behaved, but most of all in bed. It was horrifying, really, to be in bed with a man who would do just about anything in bed.

He still shook in fright whenever a homosexual was in the vicinity. He tried everything to get them out of his sight.

After all, he figured that heaven would have forbid telling the world of what had happened between him and somebody else.

Mario was of course interested in women, so he chased them around quite frequently; however, he had also slept with a man once against his own will.

It had started as a normal day. Mario was walking in a city in Mushroom Kingdom on one of his quests to save Peach as he usually had to do whenever Bowser took action. He was sitting in the local bar waiting for a drink humming a tune to himself as he sat.

Then, a rather large man had started talking to Mario. The plumber took a liking to him and began being friendly with the man, and in fact they began walking somewhere. Mario liked that they were lacking in sense of directions and they were walking nowhere.

The man in question had created a façade, however; for in reality the man was an infamous homosexual fanatic who would do whatever it took to get to the nearest one-night stand. Of course, he never cared to think of what his one-time lover's preference was, so he usually resorted to rape.

Thus, when Mario least suspected it, he felt himself get pulled into the nearest alleyway, and when his overalls were unbuttoned Mario was certain of what would happen.

Mario's rape had stayed in his mind for ages, and whenever he was close to somebody who shared the same characteristics, he would back away as much as possible. Of course, there were certain people who he knew were straight, so he would talk to them, but if he knew they were homosexual, he would refrain from talking to them for fear of being raped again.

Of course, Mario never talked about the incident at all. It was embarrassing to him that he was a straight man and that even when that was true he had undergone intercourse with a man. To him, it was scary the prospect of letting people know what had happened to him.

Luigi had not been feeling good lately, and Mario knew it was because of what he had been telling his own brother. Secretly, Mario figured Luigi would do the same thing as the man who raped him had done; and in Luigi's case he was more severe because incestuous relationships between two men were especially frowned upon by many people.

However, the man in red was putting an effort into not going too far in terms of how mean he was to Luigi. This was because Mario knew that while he could loathe Luigi, he could never hate his own brother enough to cut any ties with him. Besides, as long as his other brother Dr. Mario was straight he was fine with both of them being with him on the earth.

But he would be forever afraid of homosexuals because of what happened to him.

He suddenly knocked on his door.

"Mario!" shouted a sweet female voice from the other side of the door.

"Oh, Peach!" said Mario as he walked to the door and twisted the doorknob to open it. "Do-a come in!"

"Thanks, Mario," said the princess as she stepped into the door. Mario closed it afterwards. "I wanted to ask you something."

"You-a do?" asked the Italian plumber. "What do you-a want to ask me?"

"Well, it is about Bowser," said Peach.

"Ah," said Mario as he took a seat on his bedside. "Here, go ahead and-a sit down, Peach."

The plumber patted the part of the bed closest to him as he said this, after which the princess manually brought her dress to the backs of her legs and took a seat next to the plumber.

"So what-a do you want to ask of-a me?" asked Mario.

"Well, it's a rather long tale, so bear with me," said Peach. "You know how I always thought that Bowser was an evil man?"

"Well, I-a never shared your opinion on-a that," said Mario. "In fact, I have always-a thought that he was rather intelligent."

"Because of all the deathtraps?" asked Peach. "I would understand, but it really worries me when he does that. Anyways, Nana told me of how he would care for the group of children. You know who I am referring to, right?"

"Yes," said Mario. "I have seen him many times with that group, and they think they are-a always having fun."

"Good," said Peach. "Anyways, a new realization has dawned on me; perhaps he has another motive for kidnapping me than I thought he had?"

"That could very well be," said the Italian plumber. "Are you-a planning on asking him?"

"Yes," said Peach. "But I haven't the courage to stand up to him and ask in fear of being kidnapped again."

"Peach," said Mario. "As long as he is-a here, he will not dare to kidnap you. He knows he will get in trouble with somebody, so you should ask-a now while you-a can."

"You truly think so?" asked Peach.

"Yes," said Mario. "So long as I and several others are here, we will never let him kidnap you like all the numerous other times he has.

"I see," said the princess, standing up from the bed. "Thank you for the encouragement."

"I am glad I was of help-a to you," said the Italian as he rubbed his moustache.

Peach exited the room, carrying a smile on her face as she closed the door behind her.

* * *

"Luigi, I do not think he means it as such!" 

"He always told me that he would-a tell the truth and only the truth when we were-a still in Italy! How do you thing he doesn't-a mean it as such?"

"He might be angry, that's why."

"Stop! Leave-a me the hell alone! Get out!"

Footsteps were heard approaching a door, after which the creak of a door opening and closing sounded.

Luigi continued to cry in his lonely state.

Marth and Ganondorf had come in to try to provide mental support for the plumber in green. However, Luigi did not think they understood the magnitude of what was going on to him in that very moment.

After all, they were only children, so how could they help him.

Luigi had taken everything Mario said to an extreme level. Everybody was supposedly sympathizing with the green plumber, but how they could see what he was going through was beyond him.

After all, Luigi felt nobody could share the experiences he went through; they could say that they felt sorry for him, but words did nothing in his mind.

The plumber also figured that they spoke sweet phrases yet never meant them.

The taller plumber's life was filled with skeptical questions. His mother had the daunting task of raising three children when they fled to Smash Island; Luigi, who was the eldest, Mario, who was the middle child, and Dr. Mario, who was so into medicine that the entire family dubbed him doctor until he actually acquired his PhD in pediatric care. She pretended not to know why she left her husband, but Luigi knew exactly why; she had been betrayed by the boys' father when he went to sleep with a young woman who was in town. Therefore, she left Italy with the children, never to return to her husband.

Luigi also figured that his father probably was not a good husband anyways, given the fact that he had overheard a great many arguments between his two parents.

Since he knew about this, he was inclined to question the worth of people's statements. He never trusted very many people unless they told him they were telling the truth and they told him something.

Thus, Mario's remarks towards his brother caused a lot of damage to Luigi's character. However, the remarks themselves were not doing all of the damage.

It was the fact that he felt people pretended to care about what was happening to Luigi. They constantly spoke about how Luigi was going through a lot, but they never made attempts to actually feel what it was like to be tormented by a sibling. Marth and Ganondorf had at the least attempted to talk to Luigi, but he sent them out of the room on the pretext that he was getting emotional over what they were telling him.

In reality, he was having enough of the bull he was getting from everybody else.

He continued to sob as a church bell somewhere very far off chimed seven times.


	13. Chapter 13: The Day Before

Hello, children! 

So this is the chapter right before the Summer Festival! I think the chapter after this will be one of the longest chapters in the fic yet, as I hope to cover the relationships between all of the characters that have been featured thus far with a special emphasis on Marth and Ganondorf. Those of you who have read _A Forbidden Love_ and remember the details of its Winter Festival, expect the Summer Festival's events to be very similar, except that I've added a couple of other things. You know the rest. 

Don't have much else to add, except that here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 13: The Day Before

"I can't wait to see what it's like!"

"Neither can I! I wanna be there now!"

"I understand, Young Link. But we can wait one more day, right?"

"No!"

"Oh, come on man! I can wait, Ness can wait, and Popo can wait! Can't you wait?"

"Fine!"

Young Link pouted and crossed his small arms on top of his chest as he felt himself defeated.

The group had just been talking about the Summer Festival in the mess hall, which was to take place the next day. Young Link had been arguing about how great he thought it would be. One could not blame the young boy, for the Internet had many tales to tell of the wonders that the festival was going to bring.

However, when he went to Bowser and his little clique about it, they were willing to wait.

The Hylian boy could not understand how they could possibly wait. The tales the Internet had told made the festival beyond believable, and yet everybody else was willing to wait to see the glory!

To Young Link, the ordeal was incomprehensible.

"Whoah!" said Bowser. "Nana never asked you to admit defeat!"

"Well, I'm accepting it!" said Young Link.

The young Hylian stormed off, the tip of his hat being dragged along at a rather fast velocity.

A somewhat shocked silence took over the group.

"Um, I think we should go talk to him," said Popo, which thus broke the silence.

"I know," said Nana. "Come on!"

The three children went off in the direction Young Link stormed in, leaving Bowser alone.

The king sat there for several minutes, basking in the minutes of the break that he had been in need of for a while.

As easy as Bowser made it look, making time to play with children was very hard. He had to care over every little thing the children did, and he knew that if he let something happen to any of the children, then responsibility would fall on him.

This much was taught to him by fathering a child of ten years alone.

Bowser Jr. was a blessing bestowed to an otherwise unlucky man. He had been raising the child with such love for the simple reason that the king felt that his son was the only person in the world who he could trust with every little thing he did. The young child was also a bearer of light in the dark world of Bowser's mind; the mere sight of his little child prancing about in his everyday business filled Bowser's heart with joy and happiness. Even when Bowser was angry at the child, seeing him cry melted his heart and inspired feelings of fatherly love onto his son.

His son had been invited to the summer festival so that he could meet the children Bowser monitored constantly. This was Matthew's doing, but the koopa king felt no reason to object. After all, the king loved his son with all of his heart, and he would not mind a visit during a festival.

"Um, Bowser?"

The sweet voice of the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom interrupted his thoughts as he turned to behold Peach there.

"Whoah!" said Bowser, who almost fell back into a shrub. When he regained balance, he shook his head and hit himself in the head for being so surprised because the woman he constantly kidnapped was standing right behind him.

"Oh!" said the princess. "I'm so sorry about that!"

Upon hearing this, Bowser chuckled lightly.

"Princess, you're apologizing to the man who's successfully kidnapped you hundreds of times?" asked the koopa rather craftily. "I thought I would be dead the day I would hear that from you."

Peach blushed lightly as Bowser chuckled a little more.

"So, what brings you here?" This question from Bowser was filled with a little more mirth than he was accustomed to.

"Well, I was hoping I could ask you something," said Peach. "Why do you kidnap me?"

Bowser turned from somewhat happy to being grave.

"Why'd you ask?" asked Bowser.

"I have gotten curious over the course of the past few days…" said Peach.

Bowser sat down and looked down at the floor. Nothing was said for a while.

The princess shrugged and prepared to leave.

"Her name was Chloe."

Bowser's statement startled Peach, but she held it in and looked at the king.

"Who was named Chloe?" asked Peach.

"My wife," came Bowser's solemn response. "She was the most wonderful person in the world. She bore my son into this world, and we loved her dearly."

"And what happened?" asked Peach.

"The details…" began Bowser. "Forgive me if I break down. This is a hard story to tell."

Peach simply nodded, which gave Bowser a reason to continue.

"I…" began Bowser once again. "I had come home from a diplomatic mission… I remember walking into the castle and finding nobody there. As I looked around for people, I found my guards and my son in the basement. They claimed that a strange figure had walked in, and while they were able to get my son safely away, they were not able to find my wife. I ran up to the ground floor as quickly as I could…

"And then, I saw her at the top of the stairs… I saw her with a river of blood flowing down her face…"

Peach gasped rather loudly upon hearing this. The koopa's face began to show traces of wanting to cry.

"And then… I saw a man there," Bowser continued between sniffles. "And he was holding something. He was short, and he wore red clothing. He ran away at that second…"

"How horrible!" said Peach.

"I always assumed that Mario did it," said the king, ignoring Peach's comment. "I knew that he had a crush on you. Thus, I constantly kidnapped you in hopes of attaining revenge...

"But the worst part… I will never know the love of a woman after her… I will never know love again… I will never feel comfortable with any woman after her…"

At this, Bowser caved into his thighs and cried.

The princess shook her head violently, almost reduced to tears herself.

She had no reality shaken from her; after all, she knew that Mario was too much of a freak of honor and never enough of a hypocrite to do what Bowser had just described.

But to take away something that the king cherished with all of his heart was too much for the princess to even think about.

She touched Bowser's shoulder, which earned her Bowser's gaze.

Bowser than pulled her into a hug, during which Peach allowed the creature to cry on her shoulder.

* * *

"Weall, ah cayan't whait fow the feyestivahl tomorrah!" 

"Neither can I. I take it that Dr. Mario is going with you?"

"Yep. Weh've gawtten awful clowse to each oyother lahtly, so ah gueyess iyit's onleh nahturayal to go togeyether."

"I see."

Captain Falcon and Ganondorf were in their dorm, as they usually were when they conversed. Captain Falcon could not wait to go to the Summer Festival with Dr. Mario. Similarly, Ganondorf had quite the expectations of his own the next day, especially considering Marth was going with him. They had both heard how the summer festival was supposed to be very good. The two people could not wait to see the festival itself.

As usual, the captain had his helmet off, but this time the two were sitting on the edge of Falcon's bed.

"Thah sah thayat theyer's supposeyed ta be a buyunch of gayames ayand dancin'," said the captain. "Theyer's ahlso a fayarmer's markeyet."

"I would not know about the games and dancing, but I'd be interested in the farmer's market," said Ganondorf. "It all depends on whether some of the dances are for lovers only or for friends too."

"Thah sah thayat theyer's gonna be soyome dayances fo' freyends ayas weyell ayas lovers," said the pilot. "Ah woyonder iyif the doctah wiyill dayance with meh on thah freyend dayances or thah lover dayances."

"I think he might dance the friend dances," said Ganondorf. "I know he is beginning to like you, but I believe he would do so for the safety of his sanity. The many encounters of Mario and Luigi more than justify that."

"Yep," said Captain Falcon. "Ah heyard thayat theh freyend dayances ahre mo' fun ahniwahs."

"Really?" asked Ganondorf. "Why would that be?"

"Thah sah thayat the freyend dayances ahre mo' active thayan theh dayances fo' lovers," replied Falcon.

"Makes sense, actually," said Ganondorf. "The friend dances would be folk dances, and the lover dances would allow the lovers to cuddle up to each other and relax. That truly must be romantic."

"Yeah," said Falcon. "Ah lahke movin' araound mo' thayan relayaxin', thoyough."

"I can see why," said Ganondorf. "Being the very active man that you are, it really is not much of a surprise, now, is it?"

"Yeah," said Falcon. "Ah'm gonna go tawk to theh doctah now."

Falcon got up from his seat on the bed.

"Okay," said Ganondorf. "I will see you later then."

The pilot nodded in response and then walked out of the room.

* * *

Luigi sat in an area of the mess hall alone over an unfinished potato salad. A body of thought was swirling around his head waiting for the Italian plumber to grab it with something. 

The first thing on his mind was the summer festival. Luigi figured he really needed to be cheered by something that knew nothing and felt nothing of its guests or of the mindsets of the guests. He had heard from a great many sources within the mansion that it would be a fun festival, so Luigi looked forward to being cheered by many things.

The second was that Matthew Hand had offered to take Luigi to the festival. Luigi wondered why this was, as he knew that from the first tournament that the man was somewhat reclusive in his habits and the only person he talked with on a regular basis was his sister Cornelia. However, the two had had a lengthy conversation before the formerly charmed man had offered to take Luigi, and since Luigi had truly enjoyed talking to the hand he accepted.

Matthew Hand really seemed to be the only one who knew what he was going through, and he seemed to be the only one who truly sympathized with the plumber. Luigi wondered why this was, since Matthew seemed to have had a great upbringing and had the great pleasure of organizing tournaments.

After this second thing was Dr. Mario's preference. Luigi had reason to believe that the Doctor was more inclined to men. He of course knew about the doctor's conversations with Captain Falcon, and that these conversations were pretty frequent. Luigi figured it must have meant something for the doctor to go out of his way to talk to the captain, but in Luigi's mind it was all a matter of interpretation.

Lastly, there was Link. He had smelled of onions as of late for some reason, but whatever was causing that smell Luigi could not pick out. He figured Link was eating too many onions, but the plumber knew that an absurd number of onions would have to be used to make Link smell of onions, so therefore the plumber was perpetually confused. He wondered if other sources were at play…

The plumber felt like shrugging this thought away, though, as it was a pretty absurd thought to have anyways.

Thus, he stood up, threw what was left of his potato salad in the garbage bin, and left to go to bed.


	14. Chapter 14: Polovtsian Dances

Well, here you are! The next chapter is here, along with the realization of some things for Ganondorf. You'll see when we get there... 

The chapter is named after a work by Alexander Borodin by the name of, well, the chapter title. It's a popular concert piece, so you should know what it is I'm talking about here. 

I leave for Eastern Music Festival in less than two weeks! I can't wait for it at all! 

You know the rest. 

And here is the actual chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 14: Polovtsian Dances

A large expanse of blue water fit nicely in the backdrop of a series of snow-capped mountains. The nice summer breeze flittered by with its game with the leaves of grass which it always won, and the rather large oak by the side of the lake stood as a bystander, observing as its leafy hair fluttered in the wind along with the leaves of grass. Bushes, unusually tall for being in a mountain, stood their ground amidst the light breezes.

Beside this display of the true majesty of nature sat a series of stalls with the farmer's yield that spring. The yield included the most exotic fruits and the sweetest perfumes. Three rows of this held vast expanses of the remnants of spring's endless happiness. Walking down a row, one would eventually arrive at an enormous tent which shared colors with the nearby body of water.

Cornelia Hand's mouth hung agape as she took in every little detail. As her flame-colored hair fluttered around in the wind's game, she wondered how the citizens of the island were able to put on a festival in such a beautiful place.

She was so awestruck she hardly even noticed as her brother Matthew walked beside her, Luigi following like a puppy.

"Sister," began Matthew quite simply as he walked up to her.

Cornelia was so distracted by the beauty of the festival's location that her brother's sentence caught her off guard for a few seconds. She turned to Matthew ever so slowly, eying the black hair and emerald eyes to make sure it really was her brother who was speaking.

"Jeez, Matthew!" Cornelia let out a sigh. "You had me frightened there!"

"That is why I insistently advise you not to be distracted," said Matthew.

"But-a Matthew!" said Luigi. "You have-a to admit that this is a beautiful place!"

"Yes," said Matthew. "That is true. So, sister, where might you be going this evening?"

"I think I'm going to wander around the joint," said Cornelia. "I will definitely check out the farmer's market to see what they have, and then I might walk into that tent over there."

"That is the dance floor," said Matthew. "You are aware of this, yes?"

"I was wondering where they would put a dance floor," responded Cornelia. "I think I might head over there to watch the dancing."

"Good, good," said Matthew.

"I-a wanted to check out the farmer's market," said Luigi. "I also wanted to-a see the games that are in the market."

"As did I," said Matthew. "I also want to check out the dancing."

"I see," said Cornelia. "Well, I'm going to get going now! I want to see what's in the farmer's market."

"Sure," said Matthew. "Nobody is keeping you from going now. In fact, I was about to begin looking myself."

"Okay," said Cornelia. "I'll be seeing you two at the entrance as soon as the festival ends!"

The two men nodded as Cornelia ran off.

"Your sister is-a really nice," said Luigi. "Which-a one of your parents did she inherit that from?"

"My mother," said Matthew. "She was a kind woman."

"Ah," said Luigi. "My mother was a good mother as well, though she had me and-a my two brothers to look after, so she always overworked herself."

"Mothers never tend to have good mindsets if they have to overwork themselves," said Matthew.

"I-a know," said Luigi.

"So, shall we go check out the market?" asked Matthew.

"Of-a course!" said a rather overzealous Luigi.

The two men walked off to the farmer's market, Luigi walking in a semi-skip motion.

* * *

Link walked around the farmer's market hand in hand, scanning the various items for anything good to buy. 

The Hylian man's girlfriend was flittering all over the farmer's market with four bags full of items and another one that was getting full rather quickly.

Nobody really knew how the young princess would be able to do anything with what she had purchased, especially since most of what she had was edible and had a tendency to perish quickly.

But Zelda could not restrain herself any longer; she was fascinated by every detail of the array of stands with a multitude of things that made people happy and their bellies full.

She tore through stall after stall, running crazily about, handing a bag or two to Link's arms as she frolicked around the market.

Link was becoming slightly annoyed at this display, and when she passed him again, he made his move.

"Zelda, I really think it would be a good idea to quit spending some money," said Link.

The princess stopped, and slowly turned to Link.

"Link," said Zelda. "I know you're concerned about my budget, but do you really have to be this defensive?"

"If a princess has no money, then what is she?" asked Link in a smug voice.

"Still a princess," said Zelda. "I can still rule the land, you know."

"I don't believe it would be popular with the people, though," said Link. "I mean, think about it; if a poor princess rules a land, what do you think the rich will do?"

"Link, please," said Zelda. "The rich in Hyrule know me better than that. Stop assuming I'm a complete stranger!"

"It never hurts to be cautious," said Link.

"Link, please," said Zelda. "Would you mind leaving me alone for a while?"

The Hylian man let out a heavy sigh as he walked away from the scene.

Zelda then walked into a nearby stall that was selling various types of trinkets and a few fresh fruits every now and then. She was very distracted by looking at the trinkets and fruit, so she prepared her purse and readied some gold.

"Pst!"

This caught Zelda off guard, and she thus turned around to find a familiar swordsman with red hair standing next to her.

"Roy?" asked Zelda. "What are you doing he—?"

"Shh!!" warned Roy. "I'm trying not to attract Link here. You know what happened last time we were caught talking, right?"

"Yes, yes," said Zelda. "I still can't forgive him for that. So what are you here for?"

"I was never able to tell you where they put me when I left," said Roy. "I was hoping to get this to you sooner, but I wasn't able to find you anywhere!"

"And where were you the whole time?" asked Zelda.

"I got a job at a jewelry store two weeks ago," said Roy. "I got a job here working at the festival since I couldn't find you anywhere. Anyways, I live in an apartment in the town on the island."

"Oh, really?" asked Zelda.

"Yes," said Roy. "Master Hand paid for me moving in and everything. Not a good thing that I'm kicked from the tournament, but at least it wasn't a rocky transition the way I expected it to be."

"That's nice," said Zelda. "What's your new address?"

"I wrote it on this piece of paper," said Roy, who then took out a folded sheet of paper from his pockets and handed it to the Hylian princess. "Here."

Zelda opened the folded paper to see an address neatly penned in ink, along with a telephone number underneath and an e-mail address to accompany that.

"I don't think I will—" the princess began before being ushered into silence by Roy.

"You don't have to use the information," said Roy. "However, if you need anything, you can contact me with this."

"I see," said Zelda. "I think I better be leaving, then. Link might be getting suspicious."

"I think so too," said Roy. "I'll be seeing you later then."

"Okay," said Zelda. "Bye, Roy."

The princess stepped out of the shop, leaving behind a somewhat content swordsman.

* * *

"Hey! That was a great throw, Nana!" 

"Why, thank you!"

"You're welcome! I wonder how we would all do at the next game!"

"Oh, come on! I've lost in everything!"

"Now, now, Ness. It's never good to complain because you never try hard enough."

"But Bowser! I get beaten at everything! What hope do I have at succeeding?"

"Plenty. Up next is a guessing game where you have to pretend you have psychic powers!"

"Really? Wow, I'll give it a try!"

Ness ran ever so happily to the next game, hoping to attain a victory. The others ran as fast as they could behind the telepath.

Bowser had never felt so happy while watching the children. Ness was getting grouchy over games, but he knew it would dissolve into nothing eventually.

Bowser Jr. had made a nice addition to the group, as the child was pretty polite to the other four children. Nana and Popo had already attained a liking to the child because he constantly complemented their qualities in the market games, and knowing his son, Bowser Jr. probably felt the same way towards Nana and Popo. Young Link was of course showing off without abandon, which earned the young Hylian a few chuckles from the young koopa, and Ness' whining was not making a good first impression even though Bowser Jr. treated it as if nothing happened.

So far, though, the group was having a lot of fun at the summer festival. Young Link's expectations were met, and the rest of the group was amazed beyond comprehension. Bowser loved watching over them during the festival, especially since Bowser Jr. was there.

Bowser watched as Ness stood on a pedestal and sat, concentrating on a particular card.

The young koopa decided to take this time to jump up onto his father's shoulder.

"These kids are really nice," said Bowser Jr.

"I know," said Bowser. "It's no wonder I like them so much, yes?"

"Yep," said the smaller koopa. "They're so nice to me, especially Nana."

"What did I tell you about manners and their long term effects, eh?" asked Bowser.

"It was all correct!" said Bowser Jr. "I think I did well listening to those lectures!"

"Yes," said Bowser.

"I think Ness complains too much, though," said Bowser Jr. "I mean, think about it; it's a game, right? What could be so bad about losing?"

"I'm not sure," said Bowser.

"Well, then why's he complaining so much?" asked the younger koopa.

At this, Bowser could not help chuckling. Bowser Jr. really did take first impressions seriously.

"I don't know," said the elder koopa. "What else do you want to do around here?"

"I'll go wherever the others go," said Bowser Jr.

"And this kid wins the gold!"

The announcer's statement got the attention of both koopas, and then they noticed Ness jumping up and down holding a plush tiger as his prize.

"See?" asked the younger koopa as he jumped off of Bowser's shoulder. "I told you!"

"Yeah!" shouted Ness. "You did! And I'm happy! Whooo!"

Ness continued jumping in the air quite excitedly.

"I think we can see that…" commented Young Link. "Who wants to go to the miniature golf course?"

The young Hylian ran off in the direction of the said area.

The other four children looked at each other, and then they looked back at Young Link's fleeing form.

"Hey! Don't forget me!" yelled the other four children in unison, after which they too took off after Young Link.

Bowser shook his head very lightly and followed the children, a smile and a small chuckle escaping his being.

* * *

Peach was walking around the lakeside as she was being led by Mario. 

The Italian plumber felt he needed some time to be with Peach, as the festival was getting a little bit noisy for the princess to stand. Thus, the two of them decided to sit by the lake.

The two were looking for a beach or something to sit on, since the edge of the lake was said to have mud which would cave in when a person sat on it. Of course, a little mud would always ruin a great day, so Peach and Mario had both decided to avoid the mud as much as possible.

Eventually, after a half an hour of walking, Mario and Peach finally found a park bench worth sitting in. When this was found, Mario motioned Peach to walk in front of him, which she did. She took her place on the left part of the bench as Mario sat next to her on the right side of the bench.

"Phew," said the plumber as he sat. "All of that-a walking was sure difficult!"

"I should say so," said Peach. "Thank the lord the sun is setting soon."

"Yes," said Mario. "Did you ask Bowser your question?"

"Yes," said Peach. "I don't think it would be wise to impart the answer he gave me, though."

"Why not?" asked Mario.

"Because I am afraid it might offend you," said the princess as she straightened her rosy dress.

"Ah," said the plumber. "I would-a know better than to ask about something that might be offensive, yes?"

"Yes," said Peach. "I trust the doctor is treating you well?"

"Yes," said Mario. "We have-a been on the best terms for a while now."

"That's nice," said Peach. The princess did not want to be the one to tell Mario about the fact that Dr. Mario had started falling in love with Captain Falcon. By then, it was pretty obvious the two would be a couple, and everybody but Mario knew it. Peach made sure that Mario did not know in fear of both the doctor and Luigi's mind. It was a cruel scheme, but Peach had to do it to make sure that the sanities of both brothers were kept intact.

"I-a wonder what they are playing in the dance tent…" said Mario.

"I don't know…" said Peach. "I have heard there's supposed to be a lot of dance music on the platter tonight, so I don't know if that interests you."

"I don't-a think so," said Mario. "I never was one for dancing anyways…"

"I would not have been one for dancing, had it not been for the fact that it's part of royal training," said Peach. "Sometimes, I wish those dance classes never existed, since it was so hard to get a partner to dance with since they would all argue."

"I can imagine how that-a is," said Mario. "I wonder if the others are having any fun right now…"

"I cannot say," said Peach. "I think they are all having a great time down there."

"That would be obvious," said Mario. "Me? I'm-a happy here sitting with you."

"Really?" asked Peach.

"Yes," said Mario.

Peach blushed slightly as Mario wrapped an arm around Peach's back.

* * *

The dance tent was very large inside, as it had to be enough to fit a dance floor, several tens of tables, and a platform that rose above all. The lights shone an empty orange on everything below as men in black attire ran around attempting to get orders for food that the many people in the pavilion were waiting on. The orchestra had gotten to the area, and the principle oboist's tuning drone meant that the program for that evening would begin. 

Captain Falcon sat next to the doctor in his table. Whoever else was supposed to be in the table was unknown, as none of them had arrived; however, since nobody else was coming into the tent right then, they figured nobody would be there.

"Weall," said the captain. "Thiyis is a mahgty nahce playace they got here."

"I know," said the doctor. "The dance floor especially looks ready to be danced on."

"Yah," said the captain. "Ah woyonder whayat theh owchestra's gonna play…"

"They have a hefty program," said the doctor. "They haven't given any concerts for the past week just so they could learn the music. I've heard that it's a particularly difficult program at points, too. Apparently, somebody wrote a dance suite for this year that's supposedly very hard."

"Realleh?" asked Falcon. "How doh yah fahnd thiyis stuyuff oyout, doctah?"

"Word of mouth," said Dr. Mario. "It's apparently for large orchestra, as you can see…"

"Ah was wondereyin' whah theyere were a whoyle buyunch o' peyople iyin the owchestra…" said the captain.

"Some people do score for large orchestras, you know," said the doctor. "Not in as much abundance as I assume they did when you lived in America, but they do so in more frequency now."

"Ah cahn't wait tah heyar whayat the dancin's gonna sound lahke," said the captain.

"Yes," said the doctor. "It will be fun to hear…"

Their waiter then came up with two platters, one for the captain and the other for the doctor. He set them down on the table and lifted the lids.

* * *

Cymbals crashed loudly throughout the hall as a fusillade of brass and woodwinds rode above the multitudes of bodies flying throughout the dance floor. Strings added a nice accompaniment as their players scraped their bows across the steel cords of their strings. 

Ganondorf looked on as the dance suite began with an ever so climactic introduction. The numerous bodies of men and women swirled around the dance floor with the first number of the suite. By the movements and the timing of the orchestra, the king noticed that they had begun with a folk waltz, which meant that the first song was intended for friends.

Of course, the king did not need to guess from the music; the dancers on the floor were told of what dance was going to play next thanks to a projected image that said what kind of dance the next dance would be.

As he sat, he wondered when Marth would return. The prince had told the king that he had to go find a waiter to return a piece of silverware that he had neglected to pick up. Until then, Ganondorf did not feel like going to the dance floor, for he knew it would betray Marth and it would look pretty ridiculous anyways.

After a few minutes, the waltz's closing chords rang throughout the hall, and Marth swiftly returned to Ganondorf's side without the silver knife he had gone to return.

"It must have been fun…" said the prince. "I apologize."

"No, no," said Ganondorf. "There is no need to apologize. You did what you had to do, and in the end that counts."

"You seem to have some logic of your own," said Marth.

"Common sense," said Ganondorf. "Anyways, it looks like we will be able to dance the next dance."

The last comment was said after the term 'friend dance' flashed across the screen behind the orchestra.

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" asked the prince. "Come!"

Marth took a hold of Ganondorf's hand and ran to the dance floor, taking the Gerudo with him as he ran as far into the center of the stage before the orchestra began to play an energetic polka.

The swirling of bodies began anew, except that now a king and his friend were joining in the festivities of the crowd. The bodies moved very quickly to the usually over exaggerated trombone and oboe solos that dotted the piece between the various orchestral tutti sections.

When the polka ended, people gave the orchestra the applause it deserved. The screen told the dancers that a dance for lovers would be performed next, so Ganondorf and Marth decided it would be best to leave. Once they took their seats, a harp chord marked the start of a beautiful sarabonde.

As an amorous English horn solo began, Marth turned his head to Ganondorf.

"That was fun," said Marth. "I did not have a clue that you were such a good dancer."

"A lot of people fail to see it," said Ganondorf. "Then again, people tend to be too afraid to dance with me…"

"I would understand why though," said Marth. "Still, it is quite unfortunate for you."

"I know," said the king. "Nobody ever wants to understand who I am…"

"Ganondorf, you know I am here," said Marth as the English horn solo was slowly replaced by a viola solo. "I will always listen to you, and I will be here all of the days of your life. You will have nothing to fear, my friend."

The king wondered how he could respond to such a statement. Finally, as the viola solo came to an end, he whispered but one phrase.

"Thank you…"

The piece ended and the people clapped. The projector flashed a friend dance to come up after that, so Marth and Ganondorf resumed their places for the hoedown that started once the orchestra was ready.

The dance ended, and Marth and Ganondorf stayed because all of the dances following the hoedown were friend dances. The bodies continued to sway to and fro, the orchestra playing on as the crowd moved and Ganondorf and Marth moved as part of it.

After five dances or so, a dance for lovers finally came back on, and Marth and Ganondorf sat down in a chair.

The king let out a hefty sigh as he sat down.

"Now that is what I would consider quite the festival," said Ganondorf.

"You don't say?" asked Marth, panting a little as he sat. "I think I need to catch my breath. Thank the lord a dance for lovers is on now."

The two men continued to pant as a sweet intermezzo began. Marth abruptly stood up.

"I will have to see if the others are waiting on us," said Marth. "I will be back."

Ganondorf nodded, and Marth walked out of the dance tent.

As the music played on, Ganondorf's mind stayed on Marth.

For some reason, though, the thought of Marth made his heart race at a considerably fast pace. He also felt comfortable with Marth's presence, but he was now feeling that presence everywhere he went. Aside from all this, Ganondorf had noticed for the first time how good the prince actually looked. The way the prince's sapphire eyes penetrated all depths of human knowledge was beautiful, really, and the sky-colored hair was arranged perfectly on Marth's head.

As these thoughts swam by Ganondorf's mind, he could not help but ask himself one thing…

_What is this feeling…?_


	15. Chapter 15: The Day After

Hello, children. What's up? 

Again, nothing much is happening, except this is the start of Ganondorf's internal battle. You know where that could lead, right? 

Anyways, I don't have a whole lot to add here, except that RF's fic seems like it's gonna end soon. Thankfully, we have a sequel, so you know where that leads. 

Here, we get the first real fluff in the story! You'll see what I mean if you read on. 

And here's the chapter. Enjoy! 

* * *

Chapter 15: The Day After 

"Tag! You're it!"

"Nuts. I was hoping—"

"What was that, Ness?"

"Oh, come on, man! You're starting to get on our case like your father sometimes would!"

"Hey! I'm helping him watch out for you guys! And I'm pretty sure he doesn't condone to swearing during games."

"'Nuts' isn't the worst thing there is!"

"It really doesn't matter though, since you can get to the worst things pretty quickly if you get used to the weak stuff first."

"Aw, come on Young Link! Why are you siding with him?"

"Hey! He's right you know!"

"Okay okay! Can we get back to the game now? We won't be happy sitting here arguing with each other!"

"Okay, okay. So, I was it?"

"Yes."

"Okay then. Run for your lives!"

Ness ran as fast as he could amidst the group, which quickly scattered.

Bowser shook his head as he watched from a nearby bench in the garden as he beheld the familiar scene with a fifth person added in.

Ness could certainly be annoying, that was for sure.

The game of tag continued, and the laughing resumed as the children jumped over the various bushes and ran around as fast as possible.

Bowser kept watching to eventually see Ness tap Bowser Jr. on the arm.

"Tag!" yelled the young psychic. "You're it!"

Ness ran as fast as he could before the young koopa could tap him. After this, the koopa followed in hot pursuit.

After a while of watching the kids running around, Bowser finally noticed that Bowser Jr. was only going after Ness in his chase. When Bowser Jr. finally did succeed in touching Ness, Bowser also noticed that Ness was going after Bowser Jr. only.

This struck a somewhat bad string in Bowser's mind, as he noticed that this might be the beginning of a rivalry. Bowser was sure that it was caused by what had happened at the festival the day before; however, a nagging feeling came on him that told him that it was more than just the festival.

After several minutes of this exchange of touches between the two youths, Nana, Popo, and Young Link stopped running around waiting to see if they were still in the game. However, Ness and Bowser Jr. kept their exchange up without even noticing the other three children had stopped.

"Hey!" shouted Popo. "I thought this was five-player tag!"

"Yeah!" said Young Link. "When did you kick us out of the game?"

Ness and Bowser Jr. stopped running around, turning their eyes ever so slowly to the remaining gang members.

"Uh…" they both began.

"Well?" asked Nana.

"We don't know…" the two other youths said in unison.

"Well, if you don't know why, can you at least remember that we exist?" asked Young Link.

"Okay okay!" said Bowser Jr. "Don't take it so personally!"

"Yeah, yeah," said Ness. "Now let's go. I believe you were it?"

"You were it!" shouted Bowser Jr. "I thought you were aware of that!"

"Oh, right!" said Ness with an unhealthy hint of sarcasm in his voice. "Okay then, here I come."

The game continued, but for Bowser it took on a macabre air after the sarcasm in Ness' voice.

Bowser knew it was only a matter of time before friction began between the two, but he did not know the source of this friction and therefore he could do nothing to stop it.

Thus, he sat there watching the children play tag, ready to deliver a fully-blown lecture to whoever would be too physical first.

* * *

Dr. Mario was sitting in his office, waiting on the next patient to arrive. 

The office's bleached walls paid no mind to the doctor's state of thought as it drifted to Captain Falcon every few minutes. Whenever he had nothing to do, the doctor always found his mind drifting to the thought of that charming man who had captured his heart over the course of the tournament. He always thought of that somewhat strange yet perfectly suiting accent the captain always spoke with. The doctor also found something sexy in the man's body, though that was more a plus to come with everything else.

Most of all, the doctor loved the captain for how honest he was with the doctor. No matter what was at stake, Falcon always told the truth and nothing but the truth, and this usually had a profound effect on everybody around him. Sometimes, the captain was so honest it got him into trouble a couple of times, but Dr. Mario liked that a man that could say whatever he knew was true with all of the repercussions of saying whatever he said bouncing off of him without so much as leaving a slight mark on Falcon's character. To the doctor, the honesty was Falcon's strongest personality trait.

Also, the captain never judged people because of what they said. He judged them if they did anything harmful to another person, but usually those judgments were correct. One of the reasons the doctor felt so comfortable with Falcon was because he could be himself in front of Falcon and he would not judge the doctor any differently.

Falcon had been made to be a villain by some people, but in the end, the doctor knew that Falcon was a much better person than that.

Right as this thought graced his mind, the captain walked in the door.

"Heya, doctah!" said Falcon.

"Hello," said the doctor. "Something happened?"

"Yeah," said the captain. "Ah goyot some cuyut somewhear. Ah don't knoyow hoyow ah got it."

"Really now?" asked the doctor. "Let me see."

Falcon walked up to the doctor's desk and brought his right arm forward to reveal a small cut inside a small tear in the captain's jumpsuit. After inspecting it for about two or three seconds, the doctor knew what to do.

"Okay, it is something that should be gone within a couple of days," said the doctor. "However, I think I should still go through the motions to make sure nothing bigger happens."

"Whayat coyould pawssibleh hayappen?" asked the captain as the doctor went to the medicine cabinet.

"There's an increased risk of infection," responded the doctor as he grabbed a bottle of antiseptic and a Band-Aid from the cabinet. "Now hold still. This might sting a little."

The doctor grabbed a swab of cotton, after which he applied antiseptic to the cotton and put it on Falcon's arm. The captain hissed a little as it made contact, but the doctor removed it after a short while. Afterwards, he threw that in the wastebasket, and he grabbed the Band-Aid and applied it to the cut.

"There," said the doctor. "That should do it."

Falcon nodded.

"Thahnk ya doctah," said the captain.

"You're welcome," said the doctor. "Be sure to stop by if anything else happens."

"Gowtcha," said the captain. "Lowve ya."

The doctor inched closer to Falcon so that their noses were literally a molecule away from touching.

"Love you too," said the doctor.

Nothing more really needed to be said before the captain and the doctor put their lips together in a relatively quick smooch.

With this, Falcon stepped out of the office and back into the mansion's hallways.

* * *

Cornelia Hand sat in her desk as she filed through a pile of papers. 

She had the duty of sifting through Matthew's papers and finding one documenting important objects. Of course, the work was easier thanks mostly to the fact that she had two hands to work with in her human form, but it was still quite boring.

Cornelia actually understood why he had done this to her this time. He was the one who had less to do than she did, but he assigned tasks to her that he could have done himself very easily. Cornelia always blamed it on his bouts of laziness, but in this case Cornelia understood that he had a man to woo and a mind to save from complete destruction. Cornelia was aware of the fact that this was far more difficult than any form of paperwork, so for once she was fine with her brother's decision.

The woman wondered if Luigi was even able to see that Master Hand had fallen for him yet. He had made quite the showy attempt in taking him out to the Summer Festival, but in the grand scheme of things Cornelia figured that it was only one small step towards a larger picture.

Around this time, a knock was heard on the glass of the window.

Cornelia panicked about the fact that the knocking was not on the wood.

"Don't knock on the glass, please!" shouted Cornelia desperately. "We've already had to replace the glass once because somebody in the last tournament knocked to hard!"

"Sorry, sorry!" sounded Ganondorf's voice from the other side of the door.

"It's alright," said Cornelia. "Come in!"

The door opened, and Ganondorf walked in.

"Hiya, Ganondorf," said Cornelia.

"What are all of these papers doing here?" asked Ganondorf.

"Matthew asked me to sort them out for him," said Cornelia. "He's very busy."

"Ah," said Ganondorf. "Cornelia, may I ask something?"

"Of course," said Cornelia. "Ask me anything you want."

"Yesterday, I started feeling things over somebody," said Ganondorf. "It was very strange, actually; the mere thought of the person made my heart race faster than the sand storms of my home. I was also constantly thinking of this person after I first felt this. Would you know what this is?"

Cornelia looked at him as if something was wrong with the king before bursting into a light laughter.

"What is it that you are laughing at?" asked Ganondorf.

"It's love, silly!" said Cornelia. "It's a normal emotion that people feel for another person! Come on, Ganondorf! You sounded like you were about to die!"

"Maybe so," said Ganondorf. "Thank you."

"You're very welcome," said Cornelia.

Ganondorf exited the office as Cornelia looked at the doorway, happy for Ganondorf and whoever the lucky woman was.

"Go get 'er, tiger!" whispered Cornelia.

On the other side of the door, however, Ganondorf was having an entirely different feeling about Cornelia's revelation.

_I am in love…_ thought Ganondorf.

_With a man, no less…_

Ganondorf tried to shake that thought out of his mind, but no matter how much he wanted it to go away, it stayed where it was, never to be moved by any simple plea its master would have.

_Damn it,_ thought Ganondorf. _Why am I feeling this way?_

_It… It is not right! It is not right at all! Why am I feeling this way if it is not right?_

Ganondorf had to use every inch of his will to keep himself from stumbling to his door as this thought dominated his being over everything else.


	16. Chapter 16: Erwartung

Hello, children.

I finally got my long-awaited Wii yesterday! Long-awaited, because I had a spare controller, nunchuk, and two games without a console to do anything with for a week since there were lines for each store that had a shipment of Wiis. You know the rest.

Anyways, something musical and not-so-musical in this chapter: Erwartung is the name of a Schoenberg opera. It fits with the chapter, though, since in English it would be "Expectation" or something along those lines. Politically correct, since we're dealing with what certain people expect to be happening.

So you know where that leads.

I'll leave you with the chapter, so you know what to do!

Enjoy!

(H.W. runs to play some Wii.)

* * *

Chapter 16: Erwartung 

_It__ is not right! It i__s not right! Why do I feel this way?_

Ganondorf's head ached terribly with the prospect of his love for Marth and why it was wrong. No matter what the king tried to do to suppress the feelings, they came back as if they had never pushed back.

Why was it so hard to repress feelings that were not right? It was simply thinking over and over again that one would not have feelings because they were not born to feel this way.

Every time, he suppressed the thoughts with all of his might. And every time, the thoughts came back despite the fact that the barrier was supposed to be strong.

Ganondorf found this as a sign of weakness within him. He knew that he could not be weak in the face of hardship, and yet he found himself being invaded by the same thoughts over and over again.

For the king, surrender to these thoughts was unacceptable. It was both a disgrace to his masculinity and his culture if he gave in to these thoughts. It was a disgrace to his masculinity because he would not be able to pass his bloodline to a new generation of females to reproduce endlessly until the next male leader was born.

It was a disgrace to his culture because of what was told of homosexuals.

In ancient Gerudo mythology, women were taught not to love another woman as she would a man, for one legend depicted a duet of women who angered Din so that she ordered a serpent to eat them in their intimate embrace. Another legend depicted a leader who was banished by the goddesses themselves for following his emotions and falling in love with a most distrusted man, and still another depicted a woman turning into a boar who then killed her female lover.

Ganondorf had studied these texts. He had memorized the texts to the point that he could pronounce every intricate and complicated syllable backwards and forwards in succession. He had the verses ingrained into his head, never to return. He had taken the meaning of them, and he had learned it.

He had learned that loving another person of the same gender was wrong. He had learned severe punishment awaited those who partook in the forbidden pleasures the same gender could bring to them.

This in turn caused him to know that any loving contact with Marth was strictly forbidden on a large moral standard.

He knew that by this logic he should have avoided several other people he had met in the tournament. However, he knew they were different. They had cultures with 'merciful gods' or 'tolerance towards different people'. They had been raised under different circumstances.

Ganondorf acknowledged that, he accepted them on the basis of their cultures and who they were as people, and all was well with them.

He hardly expected himself to be feeling the same exact feelings for other men, however.

And in his case, he had the completely wrong background.

Therefore, he had to get the feelings out.

But no matter how hard he tried, he could not keep the feelings away. No matter how hard he suppressed his feelings, they always came back.

And no matter how much Ganondorf's head ached, the cruel cycle continued in its relentless motions.

* * *

"Well, Cornelia, I always figured that going after one's emotions was pretty supreme in and of itself." 

"More Rousseau coming to mind? I know you believe in that stuff, but please, being careful never hurt anybody."

"I do not think I can hold it any more, though. I want to tell him!"

"Are you sure about that? I mean, don't get me wrong, but if you go at him suddenly, then he could be surprised, even scared."

"He's opened up to me in these past two weeks, sister. It would be hard not to disappoint him with how I feel."

"Well, if you think it's the right thing to do, then I can't stop you."

"Thank you for understanding, sister."

Matthew nodded and resumed looking at his paperwork.

Matthew and Cornelia had been discussing a minor topic about Matthew's love for Luigi. Matthew had not told the man anything and felt an urgent need to do so; however, Cornelia felt that two weeks to admit love was a bit fast. Cornelia wished she knew how well the two men knew each other, for that made all of the difference possible between the two.

Cornelia had mixed feelings about the whole affair, but a feeling that things would work out dominated the scene.

"Say," said Cornelia. "Have you seen Ganondorf around here?"

"Yes," said Matthew. "He never seems to be in good condition when I do find him, though."

"Why not?" asked Cornelia.

"As of now, he tends to hold his head as if he had a migraine or something of the sort," said Matthew. "Whenever I walk up to him, he attempts to shoo me away from him. Sometimes, I hear him mumbling the phrase 'it is not right' over and over again…"

"Well, I told him he was in love four days ago," said Cornelia. "I don't know why he's doing that?"

"Perhaps it's who he loves?" asked Matthew.

"What do you mean?" asked Cornelia. "Ganondorf doesn't seem like the kind of man who would—"

And then, she remembered that Ganondorf muttered 'maybe so' as he left the office four days ago.

"Oh," said Cornelia. "But why is that such a big deal?"

"I do not know," said Matthew. "I myself had a hard time coming to terms with my sexuality, but why this for him?"

"Perhaps it's harder for him because of his background?" asked Cornelia.

"I cannot say," said Matthew. "After all, I myself am not a Gerudo, so how can I say something if I do not know it is true."

"Good point," said Cornelia. "I wonder who he's in love with. I mean, if it's somebody outside of the mansion, how are we going to keep track of him?"

"I would not worry about that," said Matthew. "I have a very good feeling that this man Ganondorf loves resides in this very mansion."

Cornelia nodded.

She simply nodded; whenever her brother had a feeling about something, it usually turned out to be correct.

Thus, she returned to her desk to ponder on this subject for a little more time.

* * *

Zelda sat on the couch as Link paced around the match lounge. 

The two of them had been talking about certain matters for a bit, Zelda particularly stressing on several things in their relationship. Zelda still thought Link went too far with Roy, but Link continually was unreasonable about it. The princess also told Link that intimidating a girlfriend into not leaving a relationship was not the right thing to do, to which Link waved everything off and kept on saying okay until she felt he was not listening and dropped the topic completely.

Link paced saying nothing. The two were in a state of mutual dislike which was not very intense at such an hour as the one at hand. Eventually, it faded away, but Link felt it was beginning to be overpowering the relationship on the fast track. He was hoping to get it back up as soon as possible, but he felt somewhere in the depths of his complex mind that this was a hole in the relationship that would never be mended.

"I wonder, Zelda," said Link finally. "Do you really think we can take things farther?"

"No," said the princess. "I do not think it's wise at this time."

"It's about Roy, isn't it?" asked Link.

"No," said Zelda. "It's about other things too. Think about it; you're starting to treat me like trash."

"Me?" asked Link. "Treating you like trash?"

Link bent over the coffee table and laughed, though it did not sound like the merry laugh Zelda was used to.

"The end of the world will be in place when that happens," said Link between chuckles.

"I mean it," said Zelda. "Why did you tell me to stop spending at the Summer Festival then?"

"Because I did not want you to be out of money," said Link. "You know how we all need it to live in today's world."

"Yes, but that's not the backup you gave," said Zelda.

"Prove it," said Link.

Zelda knew that this was Link's familiar trap. Therefore, she sat silently.

"I thought so too," said Link. "Ganondorf better be feeling bad."

"Why do you say that?" asked Zelda.

"Because it's great!" said Link. "I love to see that man suffer by himself! There's something magical about it!"

"Link, don't give me—" began Zelda.

"That king deserves to rot!" said Link. "He deserves to be killed! He deserves to go to the bottom of the world when he dies! He deserves the worst!"

Zelda stood up, anger etched in her face.

"What?" asked Link.

"Link, there's something called karma," said Zelda. "And let me tell you; for saying all that, you're really going to get it in the end. Just watch. For doing that, I bet somebody else is wishing you to hell."

"Yeah, yeah, what—" said Link.

"Don't give me that!" said Zelda dangerously. "I'm seriously debating whether your death should be quick or slow and painful."

Before Link could say anything else, Zelda walked out of the doorway.

Link sat on the couch Zelda formerly occupied and thought.

_Zelda's changing,_ thought Link. _I knew it wasn't a good idea to take her here! Now what do I do?_

He sat for a few minutes before he came across an epiphany on what he could do.

With a smug look on his face, he returned to his room to sort out the idea he had just gotten.


	17. Chapter 17: Epiphany

Wow. I got this stuff finished very quickly, didn't I?

That's quite an accomplishment given that I've been addicted to my Wii for a while now. Go WarioWare!

Anyways, there's a long reference to a James Baldwin novel in the chapter by the name of Giovanni's Room. That's a novel about a homosexual who runs to Paris, yadayadaya, etc. (I give a brief summary of the plot later in the chapter anyway, so what I would say here won't be important.) If you need a better explanation of the reference, say so in your review and I'll clarify.

Also, what Falcon says in this chapter is critical to Ganondorf's change of mindset, and from what some reviewers say about him that accent makes it hard to understand what he's saying. If you're having a hard time understanding the accent, let me know in a review and I'll send you a version of the speech without the accent in my reply.

And on Friday, I'm off to EMF. I think I'll just work on chapters over there since I'll have a laptop; however, I can't post anything unless I have an Ethernet cable (which I doubt my dad will get by the time Thursday comes around), so expect little to no updates for the duration of this month and July and then a whole batch of chapters (possibly including the beginning of Part 2) somewhere around the first day of August. You know the rest.

Here's the next chapter! Enjoy, and let me know about the spots that need clarification.

* * *

Chapter 17: Epiphany 

Marth sat in the mess hall, eating a bowl of pasta very slowly.

The swordsman was taking very long to eat, especially given the fact that he really needed to think about Ganondorf and why he was never coming out to do anything with the rest of the smashers. It was strange, actually, since whenever Ganondorf was outside, he was always evading Marth or otherwise not socializing at all.

Marth knew that this was very unusual of the king. He knew that if Ganondorf was doing everything in his power to avoid the smashers, then something was going on.

But what was going on? What was in Ganondorf's mind?

These were the questions that plagued Marth's mind. He had tried to sit down with Ganondorf to talk things out, but every time Marth looked at Ganondorf, his mind seemed to be in a far-away land and his responses were so quiet the very air that touched his lips was unable to bear witness to what he said. In the end, Marth had tried to help, but he could not pinpoint where the problem was.

To Marth, this was all very troubling; Ganondorf had helped him through psychological trauma, and the one opportunity that the prince had to return the favor was the one where the problem evaded him thanks to a lack of speech on part of the person he was trying to help. Marth really did want to help, but he could not.

In the end, Marth did not know what to do. He had tried to be of help to the king, but he needed some voice from the king.

Footsteps prodded into the room.

"Heya, Mawth," said the booming voice of Captain Falcon. "Stiyill eyatin' luyunch?"

"Yes," said Marth.

"Sowmthin the mayater?" asked Falcon.

Marth had brought another forkful of pasta to his mouth, but he hesitated when he was about to put the food into his mouth. He decided Falcon's question was more important and settled the fork back in its place.

"I am worried about Ganondorf," said the prince. "His current state of mind is not part of his usual self. I try to help him, but no matter what I do he will never speak loud enough. I fear that something is on his mind."

"Yow're tellin' meh," said Falcon. "He hayasn't beyen tawkin' to meh eahther."

"Really?" asked Marth.

"Yeah," said Falcon. "He stiyill tawks tah meh, buyut nowt enoyough tah sahy ah tawk to hiyim."

"I wonder what he is hiding in his mind…" said Marth.

"Ah doyon't knaw," said the captain. "Ah wawna ayask, buyut ah'm nowt show heyell ansaw."

"Well, I think it would be worth the try," said Marth. "Why don't you ask him next time you're in your room with him?"

"Show," said the captain. "Speyakin' of whiyich, ah bettah goyow noyow."

"Alright then," said Marth. "I will be seeing you later."

Captain Falcon nodded and left the room.

Marth looked at his pasta.

"I really hope Falcon asks Ganondorf why he has not been running around the way he normally does," said Marth.

He brought the forkful of food back to his mouth.

* * *

Ganondorf sat on the bed in his room, purple circles forming around his eyes as he drove the thoughts out restlessly. 

_Why do the thoughts come back to me?_ thought Ganondorf. _Why is it so persistent?_

The king had been losing much sleep as he raged his war with the feelings that were not meant to be. The thoughts incessantly came back, and he would normally fight it for hours on end, only to see them return after only a few minutes of having a clear head.

Ganondorf felt he had to fight them himself, and he spent all of his time alone on that premise. Marth had asked, sure, but the king could not bring himself to tell anything about what he felt, least of all the person he felt the feelings for. Ganondorf knew he could use some help, but he felt that all of his attempts at change would be reversed and completely destroyed just because of three little words.

Ganondorf shook his head. The thought had come back to strongly, and now he was not sure if he could fight it much longer.

At this particular moment, Ganondorf's roommate happened to step in. The shock was pretty inherent on his face as he looked at the king.

"Ganondowf," said Falcon. "Ah've neyevah seyen ya lahke thiyis! Whawt's gowin' awn?"

Ganondorf shook his head violently and looked away from Falcon, head still cupped in his head.

Ganondorf did look very miserable in the state he was in; he sat cross-legged on his bed with his shoes still on. His back curved dangerously so that Ganondorf's face leaned over the edge of the bed, and the hands remained by his ears in a constant cover for fear of what others might see in the orbs of his face.

"Aw, cohme awn," said Falcon. "Y'all cayan teyell a frieyend a goyood sehcret, yah?"

Ganondorf again shook his head, and his stare at the ground below him intensified.

"Ganondowf, yah cayan't doh thiyis tah yowseyelf," said Falcon. "Y'all awre mahkin it hayard on yoself. Spehak! Ah listeyen."

The king almost shook his head again, except that this time he knew Falcon had reason in his voice.

It never occurred to the king until now, but in being silent, he locked himself away from others as well as himself. His true self evaded him in the little sphere of his mind, and Ganondorf was constantly allowing it to catch up to him only to have it find him again.

Ganondorf wondered if that was why the feelings never stopped returning as he lifted his head up from its gaze.

"Close the door," said Ganondorf after taking a minute to find his voice.

Falcon nodded, walked to the door, and closed it. He then returned to Ganondorf's side.

"I…" said Ganondorf. "I have been feeling feelings for somebody… I had not the slightest idea what they were… And then I went to Cornelia, and… and she told me it was love, and I—"

"Loyove?" asked Falcon.

This quickly followed with a scoff.

"Thiyis is ayall owta loyove?" asked Falcon. "Wayas iyit woyorth it?"

"I was in love with Marth, though," said Ganondorf.

Falcon stopped in his tracks.

"So?" asked Falcon. "Loyove iyis stiyill loyove."

"I do not know though," said Ganondorf. "You are homosexual, and that would be expected out of one such as you. You would not understand! I will be prosecuted by my own people! All of my attempts at showing people that I am a noble man at heart will be undone, and my people will be disappointed with the prophecy! I cannot! I cannot!"

Ganondorf turned to face the wall.

The pilot puckered his lips a little, and after some thinking he went to his suitcase where it lay next to the desk, fished through his extra jumpsuits and gloves, and pulled out a red book of small proportions with the name "James Baldwin" in large yellow letters and the title "Giovanni's Room" on a blue island in this sea of crimson. He then walked up to Ganondorf and lightly tapped the king's arm with the book. Ganondorf turned to look at the edition.

"Heyar," said Falcon. "Ah thiyink y'all shoyould reahd thiyis."

"Why?" asked Ganondorf.

"Y'all mahgt geyet sowmethiyin' oyout of it," said Falcon. "Iyit's aboyout sowmbawdy who wayas iyin theh sahme siyituation y'all ayare iyin now."

"What is the difference?" asked Ganondorf. "He will still be feeling the way I do! I try to repress the feelings, so what is it going to teach me?"

"Thayat iyis a cahse of sohmbowdy suppreyesin' thoyose feehlin's for bahsically hiyis entiah lahfe," said Falcon. "Iyin owder tah geyet awah froyom theh thiying thayat socahety sayas iyis wrowng, heh mahkes a biying lah thayat eyends up cawsin' hiyim tah beh unhayappy."

"But why does it help?" asked Ganondorf. "That has not answered my question."

"Becawse ah feyar theh sahme thiying wiyill happeyen ta y'all," said Falcon.

"Falcon, please," said Ganondorf as he lightly shoved the volume away. "Nobody but you would understand! Do not pretend that anybody else would!"

There was silence in the room. Falcon put the volume on his friend's lap.

"Ya knoyow, ah wayas in theh sahme situayation y'all weyere iyin wounce," said Falcon. When he got no reply, he continued.

"Ah shuyunned mahseyelf fow feehlin thiyis whay abaot meyen, ayand ah feyelt tehrryble. Mah uyuncle ayasked meh, and ah decahded ta teyell hiyim. Ayand ah diyid. Heh toyook iyit lahke a mayan, ayand sayd thayat ah coyould sahy whateyevah ah wayanted ta sayh. Ah toyold hiyim thayat wayas a wheak argumeyent ayand thayat ah hayad no reason tah sayh anythiyin' withoyout peyople shuyunnin' meh.

"Theyen, heh toyold meh tah beh mahseyelf. Heh toyold meh tah beh oyown mah wayh ayand beh mahseyelf. Ayand ah diyid

"Ah neyevah understoyood whah he toyold meh tah beh mahseyelf, thoyough.

"Untiyil theh fiyirst touwnament. Ah loyost miyiserableh, ayand ah beyat mah beyed up goyod thayat nahgt. Wheyen ah woyoke uyup, theh Hayand sibliyin's weyere stayandin' ayat mah bead, stahrin' at meh ayas iyif ah hayad juyust kiyilled boyhs oyon tha sahd o' tha roahd. Ah apologahzed real goyood afta' thayat, ayand owfered ta repayh everythiyin'.

"Howeyevar, he chawged meh eyextrah ta bahy meh a giyift fo beyin' hownest. Thayat giyift wayas thiyis."

With this, Falcon patted the volume sitting in Ganondorf's lap.

"Ayand ah reyad the boyook.

"Ayand ah realahzed whah mah uyuncle towld meh tah beh mahseyelf; ah woyould nowt beh hayappy iyif ah creahteyed mah lahes becawse ah atteyempted tah geyet awayh froyom mahseyelf.

"Reyad iyit. Ah thahnk y'all mahgt geyet somethiyin' outa it."

With this, Falcon nodded and left the room.

Ganondorf's gaze followed the captain out of the room, and once the captain read it, his eyes turned to the volume that sat on his lap.

After staring at the volume for a minute or two, he picked the volume up and opened to the first page, and began to read.

As he read, Ganondorf found himself put in the shoes of a man named David, who left his home country and created a lie to get away from who he knew he was simply because society said it was incorrect. He read a tale of David and his relationships with Hella, a woman whom David hoped would be his 'mooring post' in life, and Giovanni, a bartender whom David stayed with and came to hate because of the room that seemed to imprison David in his time with Giovanni. Ganondorf felt the feelings of the central character as he lived his life in Paris, experiencing everything from Guillame firing Giovanni to the various things Jacques said to try to make David be himself. In the end, David's lie caused Hella to leave David for good and it ultimately led to Giovanni's breakdown, with which the latter was only spared by death in a jailhouse. David ended the novel unhappily, and all because of the great lie he told to spare himself ridicule by others.

When Ganondorf closed the book, it had worked a profound thought into his mind. The book did indeed carry the message that Falcon had told him it did, and that in the end, it did not matter how people thought about a person; if the individual mentioned was happy simply by being himself, then what other people said really did not matter in the end.

In a way, Falcon had been right. Ganondorf realized he had been stupid fighting the feelings simply to not look like a freak in the eyes of other people.

Ganondorf held the edition of _Giovanni's Room _in his hand as a solitary tear worked its way down his cheek, cleaning some of the purple substance that had gathered under the king's eyes.

_Now it is my turn to say that I am a fool,_ thought Ganondorf.


	18. Chapter 18: Confession

Hello, children.

I've been at the EMF site for a while now, and it looks really nice so far; everybody's good from what I heard outside the practice rooms, the location is _very_ beautiful (the word 'very' being twenty yards taller than the laptop I'm typing this from in addition to the italics), the dorms are pretty good, and for once the mess hall actually looks nice. My schedule will get a little hectic later in the week, but hopefully I'll have time to do this in between the orchestra rehearsals and the private lessons and the chamber rehearsals and, well, you know the rest.

Who knows? Maybe the end of Part 1 will be an EMF chapter. (Especially since Part 1 ends in two chapters.)

You know the rest. Here's the chapter, and enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 18: Confession

Luigi sat in the darkest part of his room, the moonlight shining on his bed as he sat thinking.

His heart was fairly heavy. True, Mario had no reason to scream at his brother as of late, but the arguments that had occurred were all very hard, and they thus still remained in Luigi's consciousness. This bothered the plumber to no end, since he knew that if Mario could not accept him for who he was, then who would?

Luigi shuddered at this fact. True, Matthew had accepted him and even gotten out of his way to be nice to the plumber, but Luigi figured there was more to his kindness than mere acceptance. He knew that something else was at play, but he had no real idea as to what. That was one thing that Luigi knew he would ask Matthew when he had the chance.

At this point, a creaking came from the door, and Luigi sat there waiting for the worst.

"Luigi," said Matthew's voice from the doorway. "Why are you sitting here alone?"

A mixture of surprise and fright caught the plumber, but he did not move an inch from his position.

"I-a needed some time to… think," said Luigi.

"Well, I understand that, but not in the darkness of your room!" said Matthew.

"I cannot-a concentrate on my thoughts anywhere else," said Luigi.

"I see," said Matthew. "In any event, why is it so dark in here?"

"The light bulb has not-a been working," said Luigi.

A small silence followed by a brilliant burst of light from the room's lampshade followed.

"Then turn on the lamp," said Matthew. "Anyways, how are you feeling?"

"I am not-a so good here right-a now," said Luigi. "Mario is—"

"Really, Luigi," said Matthew. "You should be over that by now."

"I-a know," said Luigi. "But I just can't-a understand why he would hate me solely based-a on what I am and-a not who I am."

"There are plenty of people like that," said Matthew. "But anyways, that is not what I am here to say."

"Matthew?" asked Luigi. "May I ask-a you a question?"

"Yes?" asked Matthew.

"Is… Is-a there something else as to why you are-a going out of-a your way to be nice?" asked Luigi.

Matthew sighed. He knew he would have had to answer that question sooner or later, so he decided then was the opportunity.

"Yes," said Matthew. "I normally do not say this to anybody, but we have more alike than you think…"

Luigi thought a minute before turning to face Matthew.

"You're-a gay too?" asked Luigi.

Matthew slowly nodded his head.

Luigi looked down at the floor, and then back at Matthew.

"I…" said Luigi. "Th… Thank-a you… I have-a been wanting to ask-a that… Because I think… I think I love you…"

Matthew pulled Luigi in a small hug.

"You are very welcome," said Matthew. In a much softer and infinitely tender voice, he added, "My love…"

The two of them were blissfully unaware of a man who stood at the doorway who had witnessed the affair.

"He he…" snickered the said person. "Wait until I tell Mario…"

The person tiptoed away as quietly as possible.

* * *

Mario sat in his dorm, waiting on nothing in particular.

His conscience was catching to him very quickly about his treatment of Luigi. He knew his brother would probably be after somebody else, but he knew that the line between brotherly love and extra-brotherly love was a very thin one, so he knew he had to stay on his toes. He could not let his guard down.

Even through all this, the plumber felt he could not keep abusing Luigi simply out of fear for what he figured homosexual men did. Mario knew that he was in danger as long as homosexuals were rampant, but he knew Luigi needed slack. True, the younger plumber had taken great care to not go over the edge with Luigi, but Mario knew that eventually he would have to end the cruelty to his own brother.

However, Mario knew he needed an excuse to cut the slack on his brother. He felt it would be too sudden to apologize to his brother through the onslaught of insults and various other criticisms he had landed. Mario really hoped that an excuse could come soon, as he felt that if he held on too long, he would lose his mind.

A knock sounded on his door, and he jumped in his spot.

"Who is it?" asked Mario.

"It's me!" shouted Link's voice from the other side of the hall.

"Coming!" said the plumber as he stood up from his seat and walked to the doorway.

As the plumber knew from the voice, Link was standing on the other side of the door.

"Hey Mario," said Link in a friendly tone of voice. "How are you?"

"I'm-a fine," said Mario. "I need a reason to apologize to my brother over-a everything I've-a said to him, though."

Link's expression perked up curiously.

"Why is that?" asked Link.

"I think I've-a been too overbearing on him for the past-a few days," said Mario. "I really need to-a say that I am sorry for being too-a harsh."

"Well, we'll see about that once I tell you what I saw…" said Link.

"Are-a you implying something?" asked Mario curiously.

"Yes," said Link. "Very much so."

"What-a happened?" asked Mario.

"I caught Luigi being all cute and cuddly with Matthew," said Link, a smug expression showing on his face. "You know what Matthew said to Luigi? He told him he loved Luigi. He even kissed his forehead at one point."

"What?" asked Mario. He was not very shocked, but there was still surprise showing in his face.

"You heard me," said Link. "And what is more, Luigi said he loved Matthew back."

Link's smug expression intensified as Mario put a curious look on his face.

"Really?" asked Mario. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," said Link, his expression now extremely sneaky.

"Well then, that's-a great!" said Mario with jubilation in his voice.

All of the smugness that had been building in Link's facial expression immediately gave way to a new, disgusted look of surprise. If Link would have had a beverage with him, one would have seen a geyser flowing from his mouth consisting of whatever fluid was in there.

"W-what?" asked Link in a loud and surprised tone. "B-but you should be hating Luigi more now that you know he's in love!"

"Well, he won't-a be after-a me now!" said Mario. "That's-a for sure! Now I've-a better apologize to him! See ya!"

Mario almost skipped out of his dormitory, but he restrained it a little and strutted out of his room, leaving behind a very surprised and very shocked Link.

* * *

Morning came, and Luigi sat in his usual spot in the mess hall over some unfinished Belgian waffles. He was a little happier than he usually was the past few days, mainly because he knew that he had somebody whom he could talk to in a time of need.

Matthew sure was passionate about certain things when it came to love, of course. The two of them agreed to take it slowly, but he still added the occasional kiss on the head every so often. Luigi felt it was a start, but he did not feel like it went very far either. He knew that things would be pretty good for him.

However, he needed two final things before he could truly let himself go; he wanted to hear Mario apologize to him, and he really wanted Mario to know what was going on between Falcon and the doctor. He wanted an apology from Mario to know that he would still have both of his brothers, and he wanted Mario to know about the doctor to save both of their sanities from exploding; after all, nobody knew what Mario would do if he found out that the doctor, especially after what happened to Luigi. After that, the taller plumber would be happy with everything around him.

"Hello, Luigi!" said Mario's voice cheerfully to the plumber in green.

Luigi turned his head to see Mario walking his way with a rather large stack of pancakes on his plate. The younger plumber walked to Luigi's table and took a seat next to him.

"Mario?" asked Luigi. "What are-a you doing-a here?"

"I wanted to tell you something," said Mario. "You see, I-a heard from-a Link that—"

"So you-a heard?" asked Luigi, voice dropping slightly.

"Yes," said Mario. "And I just want-a to say that… That I'm-a so sorry about everything that-a happened between you and-a me."

Luigi looked at Mario, a new happiness in his eyes.

"Really?" asked Luigi.

"Yes," said Mario, a slight nod following.

Luigi smiled at his younger brother. Mario looked at Luigi in nervous anticipation as of what to do.

"_Grazie molto, mio fratello_," said Luigi.

Mario pulled Luigi into a brotherly hug.

"_Siete benvenuti, Luigi,_" said Mario in response, voice infinitely soft and tender.

As the two brothers apologized, Link was sitting at another table desperately wanting to pull his hair out.

_This isn't how it's supposed to end! Mario's supposed to kick Luigi's ass all the way to hell and back! They're not supposed to make up!_

This thought ran through his mind as Samus approached.

"Link, are you okay?" asked Samus.

The Hylian snapped out of his trance and looked at Samus.

"Oh, I'm fine," said Link. "I was hoping I could talk to you."

"Sure," said Samus as she sat down next to Link. "What do you want?"

"I want to go to Marth's room," said Link. "With you. Is that allright?"

"Sure," said Samus. "What time is appropriate for you?"

"One o'clock?" asked Link.

"Sounds fine by me," said Samus as she stood. "I'll be seeing you later then."

The bounty hunter left the mess hall, unaware of her role in a larger scheme that Link had dreamed up on a cocaine high...


	19. Chapter 19: Peripetie

Well, the orchestra roster for the first two student concerts here in EMF recently got posted, and I get to do the Mahler 1st! (Hey! It was that or Shostakovich 10, and if you ask me I'd rather do Mahler since he's a better composer.) We also had our first rehearsal on it today, and it's a lot of fun. It's very difficult, but it's one of those things that you have fun with through all of your mistakes (Just like Polovtsian Dances. Mm...). Of course, the fact that it's Mahler makes it all the better, but seriously, it's _fun. _The only downside of that concert is that I have to do one of the Mozart Symphonie Concertantes (and if you must know I hate Mozart thanks to his treatment of second violin sections), but luckily the Mozart piece is first on the program, so I can look over that.

And as of now, Chapter 20 looks like it's really going to be long. Those of you that thought the past few chapters were short are going to get a treat with this and the next chapter since they are going to be very long. You'll see.

There's another music reference in the title, and this time the title is the fourth movement of the Schoenberg _Five Orchestra Pieces._ It's for good reason; "Peripetie" is the German equivalent of "Peripetia" (a reversal of luck for the worse), and lucks are bombed by a little something Mario does in this chapter. Exactly what it is is something you'll have to find out.

There is also some very strong language here. I use the F-word a few times, but it's nothing that will bring the rating up.

I've blabbered enough. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 19: Peripetie

Dr. Mario was sitting in his office, toying with a scalpel that he kept with him for extended periods of time.

The scalpel in question was called "Good Ol' Fix-em" by the doctor, given the fact that the scalpel he used seemed to have a magic touch whenever it was used to operate on a patient. If he did not need to use it, he usually kept it in a pocket in his coat as a token of luck for other operations. As of late, the doctor had no need of it, but he found that bringing it with him wherever helped in his love life in addition to his career.

The doctor was in love with Falcon; in this the doctor felt very content. He had a man he could depart all secrets upon and have good conversations with if he felt he needed to be happier at any given moment. Falcon looked like the kind of person who would easily get into a fight, but Falcon really was a very nice individual. It was a wonder that people prosecuted him in their minds because of what he was and not who he was, but the doctor really was glad to have known Falcon.

Dr. Mario knew that it would only be a matter of time until Falcon took their relationship to the point where they would stay in the same bed together after the tournament. The doctor knew that the pilot was very active in what he did, and he knew that he would want to jump to the sexual stage of their relationship as soon as possible. Marriage was out of the question for both of them since homosexuals were not allowed to marry on the island, but the doctor knew that being partners was more than enough.

As if on cue, the doctor looked up to see Falcon enter the office. Dr. Mario put his scalpel back in his pocket and walked to his desk.

"Hello, Douglas," said the doctor. "How are you today?"

"Ah'm fahne, thayank y'all vehry muyuch," said Falcon.

"Any cuts today?" asked the doctor.

"Naw," said Falcon. "Ah ayactualleh wawnteyed tah ayask y'all sowmthin'."

"Sure," said the doctor.

"Ah wayas wownderiying iyif y'all woyould lahke tah go uyup tah Mawth's royoom tonahgt," said the racer. "Ya knoyow, tah geyet sowmethiyin own."

The doctor immediately knew that this was Falcon's opportunity to bring their relationship to the next phase of development. Dr. Mario did not mind this, except there was one small detail that bothered him about the setup.

"Why Marth's room, though?" asked the doctor.

"Weyall, iyit's vereh siyimple," said Falcon. "Mah royoom is owcupahed bah Ganondowf, and y'all royoom wiyith thayat fowx oh whateyevah."

"You mean Fox," said the doctor. "So if Marth does not have Roy with him, we can do what we want there."

"O' cowse," said Falcon.

"I do not see why not," the doctor said. "It would especially be interesting to see how good you are in bed…"

This last sentence was said as a chuckle escaped the doctor's lips.

"Aw, cowme own!" said Falcon. "Ah'm seyeriows heyere!"

"I know you are serious," said the doctor. "I just like a little verbal foreplay…"

"Weyell, theyen, veyerbal fowplah iyis whayat y'all wiyill get," said Falcon. "Seyeven ow'clowk soyound good tah y'all?"

"Very good," said the doctor. "I will see you tonight then. In front of Marth's room?"

"Yeah," said Falcon. "Ah'll beh seyeng y'all laytah."

Falcon left the office, leaving a doctor with quite a few interesting fantasies as to what was going to happen in Marth's room.

* * *

The sun had slowly begun to sink behind the mountains surrounding the mansion as Mario walked with Peach down the hall. The two were very good friends, and they figured they would stay that way for a long time. As they walked they were fairly silent to each other. 

The princess really wanted to ask Mario what made him make up to Luigi, so she made her move then.

"Say, Mario," said Peach. "I wonder why you made up to Luigi this morning."

"Link-a told me he was in-a love with-a Master Hand," said Mario.

"I don't know about that," said Peach. "I mean, that is true, but I think Link was trying to cause trouble."

"I noticed that when he-a talked to me," said Mario. "You should have-a seen his face when I rejoiced!"

"I figure," said Peach. "Why apologize now when you could have a while ago?"

"I apologized when I-a learned he would not-a be after-a me anymore," said Mario.

"When he would not be after you?" asked Peach. "Luigi knows better than that!"

"You never-a know, my dear," said Mario. "You never-a know."

"Okay," said Peach, pretending to understand what Mario said but still wondering why Mario would think his own brother would lust after him.

It was indeed very strange that Mario would even think that Luigi would lust for his brother, especially given the fact that the princess knew that all three brothers were versed in the supposed evils of incest. However, she did not have the energy to tell this to Mario.

The plumber opened his mouth to say something when both of them heard a very drowned moan emanating from the hallway.

"What was that?" asked Peach in a whisper.

"I don't-a know," whispered Mario.

The moan sounded again, but this time it was discernible where it was coming from.

"Is that from Marth's room?" asked Peach.

"Let's-a go see," said Mario.

They walked two doors from where they were to be at the door to Marth's room, where what sounded like kisses and moans were sneakily flying underneath the doorway.

"What's going on?" asked Peach.

Mario bent down to the level of the keyhole to figure out what was going on.

He saw Marth's bed, with two forms of white flesh grinding against each other on it. A blue jumpsuit and a white coat lay in a bundle on the side of the bed, with black jeans on top of the array.

Mario figured it was just two people in love, so he decided to leave it be.

However, just as he was about to leave his gaze at the keyhole, he noticed something fall from the white mass that was slowly becoming one.

It was the stethoscope that perched on Dr. Mario's head.

At this, Mario's vision reeled before curiosity flooded in.

"What the?" asked Mario, not caring that he should have been whispering.

He stood up from the keyhole, grabbed the doorknob, and flung the door open so that everything could be seen.

The scene was exactly as it had appeared through the keyhole, except now the white mass was clearly discernible as two men. Both had brown hair, and both turned to look at the disturbance.

Captain Falcon had Dr. Mario pinned on the bed.

"What in…?" asked the doctor.

A very tense silence took hold of all four individuals in the area. Peach brought her hand up to her heart, fearing the worst as Mario's eyes adjusted to a combination of shock and anger.

"Y… you…" said Mario slowly.

Mario then lunged himself at Falcon, tearing him away from the doctor and pinning him to the floor with a soft thud sounding in the room.

"You son of a bitch!" shouted Mario as he delivered a fast punch to Falcon's face.

"Mario!" shouted Peach as she entered the room quickly. "Stop it!"

"You son of a bitch!" yelled Mario, punching Falcon harder this time. "How dare you-a rape my brother! How dare you!"

"Mario! Mario!" Peach put her arms between Mario and Falcon and distanced their torsos as far away as was possible.

"Peach, stay out of-a this!" said Mario vehemently as he violently flung the arm keeping him from attacking his prey away from him and went in for another punch. "How dare-a you! How fucking-a dare you!"

"Mario!" The doctor had finally decided to speak up, and he lifted Mario by the shoulders. The plumber struggled against the doctor's hold. "It is not what you think! I… I…"

Mario relaxed a little, but he still had anger bottling up in him.

"Well?" asked Mario. "What did you-a do?"

"I… consented…" said the doctor in a somewhat defeated voice.

All of the malice towards Falcon that Mario had been feeling until then suddenly shifted into nothing as a shocked expression formed on his face.

"What?" asked Mario.

"You heard him!" said Peach as she helped the captain off of the floor. "He said he consented. Therefore, you shouldn't have been punching Falcon in the face the way you did!"

"You… _wanted_ him to do that?" asked Mario dangerously.

The doctor nodded slowly.

Any surprise that had been in the plumber was immediately replaced by pure malice towards the doctor. After this new feeling took hold, Mario rammed his elbow up against the doctor's exposed area, which earned a moan of pain.

"Mawio!" shouted Falcon. "Whayat theh heyell awe y'all doyin?"

"What am I-a doing?" asked Mario. "What am I-a doing? He could be with you, and then with me!"

With this, the doctor scurried away as quickly as possible, but Mario jumped on him and delivered as many punches as possible.

"Stop it!" shouted Peach as she ran to Mario, grabbed his armpits, and attempted to get him off of the doctor with Falcon's help. "Get off of him!"

"Let-a me at him!" yelled Mario as he flailed in their grip, broke loose, and continued to rain punches on the doctor's face.

"Dayamn it!" yelled Falcon as he and Peach tried to get him off of the doctor again.

"Stop it!" yelled Peach as the princess hit the plumber as hard as she could on the shoulder. With the help of the hitting, the princess and the racer successfully got the plumber off of the doctor.

The doctor, fear in his eyes, slowly stood up. This fear consummated itself as the doctor slowly went past Falcon.

Mario took this opportunity to give an elbow to Falcon's stomach, which sent the racer plummeting to the floor. Peach lost her grip on Mario's arm, and thus the plumber ran after the doctor and went in for a punch that connected.

"Stop it!" yelled Peach as she ran to Mario.

As Mario was about to land another punch, a familiar voice came from the doorway.

"What is going o—" asked Marth's voice before he was silenced by the sight of Mario's punch connecting with the doctor.

The plumber then jumped on the doctor as he fell, and rained as many punches as possible.

"Well?" asked Peach.

"Doyon't juyust stayand thear!" yelled Falcon as he and Peach attempted to grab Mario's armpits again. "Geyet theh oyothers!"

Marth nodded as he ran to the stairs of the dorm hall.

"Damn it!" yelled Marth. "I cannot believe this!"

He ran down the steps to the match lounge. The match between Zelda and a certain Fox McCloud was supposed to be going on, and he knew that the other smashers would be there to watch the fight.

When he got to the bottom of the stairs, he ran around the wall to the corner, where he then turned left.

_Almost there…_ thought Marth.

He entered a door on his left and exhaled deeply.

"You guys!" shouted Marth.

The scene was generally relaxed down in the lounge; Link was sitting on the nearby table, watching the match intently. Ganondorf, Bowser, and Bowser Jr. were sitting on the nearby couch, with Nana on the floor in front of Bowser Jr. and Ness sitting next to her. Popo and Young Link sat on the back of the couch Ganondorf and the others were sitting on, and Samus stood behind the whole array wearing a stoic face beneath the visor. Luigi sat on a chair that was next to the table Link sat on.

Upon entering, everybody stared at Marth. Ganondorf was the first to say something.

"What is the matter?" asked Ganondorf, standing as he did so.

"Yeah, what is going on?" asked Bowser. "You look like the mansion disintegrated and we never even noticed."

"It's Mario!" said Marth. "He found out about the doctor and Falcon, and if we do not do something the doctor could end up dying by Mario's hand!"

A shocked murmur ran throughout the room as people stood up quickly and ran to the doorway.

"Where?" asked Luigi.

"Follow me!" shouted Marth.

He backtracked all the way to his room, except now the rest of the smashers followed in hot pursuit. When they arrived, the fight had taken itself to the hallway, with Falcon making numerous futile attempts to get Mario off of the doctor. This time, however, the doctor had to be held back by Peach as he was trying to get some blows in as well.

"Leave me alone, princess!" yelled the doctor as he flailed in Peach's grip.

"Shut up-a your face, you fucking-a backastabber!" yelled Mario.

The doctor and the plumber broke away at the same time, and they launched at each other, Mario being hit in the stomach as the doctor's exposed fist connected with the said area.

Luigi was unable to stand it after seeing just one punch of the fight, and he ran to the quarreling brothers.

"Stop this-a nonsense!" yelled Luigi as he put his arms between the two conflictive brothers.

Mario failed to be surprised by the fact that Luigi had shown up.

"Leave-a me the fuck alone, Luigi!" yelled Mario as he jumped to his right and batted Luigi's arm away.

"Mario, please!" yelled Luigi. "Don't-a do this! You are-a supposed to be brothers!"

A short pause followed. The tension of the silence left some of the spectators in worry as to what would happen next.

"Brothers?" asked Mario dangerously. "Not any-a more you aren't."

This comment earned a collective gasp from everybody present. Even Link showed genuine shock at what Mario said.

"W-what?" asked a now very shocked Dr. Mario.

"You-a heard me, bitch!" shouted Mario. "You could be after-a my ass next!"

"What?" asked Bowser from the crowd.

"Who gave you such a preposterous idea?" asked Samus.

"Shut up-a your faces!" yelled Mario. "All of-a you! As of today, I do not-a have brothers any more! Fuck-a you, Luigi! And you too, doctor!"

Mario stormed away from the area in anger and entered his dorm. The door was shut so tightly a decisive slam reverberated throughout the hallway.

Nobody said anything for a long time. The shock of seeing Mario disinherit both of his brothers was incredibly overpowering for everybody at the scene.

A set of footsteps sounded from behind the group.

"What happened?" asked Matthew as he came upon the scene.

In the commotion, nobody noticed that Ganondorf had left the group to get Matthew and Cornelia onto the scene. The female could not come since she was manning the controls for the currently progressing match, though, so Matthew was the only one who could make a good decision around the mansion.

"What happened?" repeated Matthew.

After this, Luigi sniffled once before completely losing his composure.

The plumber fell to the ground and cried, any attempts to hold the tears back being completely nonexistent.

* * *

A somber air shrouded the atmosphere the next morning due to the combination of shock and sorrow surrounding the events of the night before. Zelda and Fox seemed to be the only ones in the mansion who had no real sense of what was going on, given the fact that the match was still going on when the other smashers were upstairs attempting to get over the shock of what had happened. Nobody really cared who won the match anyway, since they were all too busy thinking about Luigi or otherwise trying to figure out why Mario cut off his ties with his remaining family. The doctor closed his office that day because of what happened the night before, and the garden missed its usual air of comedy and friendliness brought on by the children. 

For Matthew, it was a very depressing atmosphere to be in.

The head of the tournament stood in front of Mario's door with the master key. Mario had locked his room the night before for a reason that nobody could determine, so Link had to sleep in Marth's room. Luigi stood next to his lover, waiting very nervously for something. Peach and the doctor both stood behind Luigi, with Falcon standing on the side of Matthew opposite Luigi. They all waited as Matthew inserted the key, turned the lock, and opened the door.

The room was empty when they entered it. They expected Mario to look up from his bed when they opened the door, but he was not there. The window was open, along with some leaves denoting how he got out of the mansion.

Matthew entered the room, and everybody else slowly followed the man's example. They checked everything, but no trace of the plumber was found. Not even his suitcase was found.

As the search closed, Peach noticed a slip of folded paper lying on Mario's desk. She picked it up, opened it, and scanned it.

All eyes fell on the princess. She looked at them after she read the note, eyes brimming with tears.

"What does it say?" asked the doctor.

Peach swallowed and brought the note back to the level of her eyes.

"By the time you find this, I will be gone," said Peach, following the note's wording exactly. "I cannot stand the thought of not one, but both of the people that many in this mansion call my brothers lusting after me. Therefore, I will leave to a place where nobody can lust for me. Not Luigi, not Dr. Mario, nobody. Do not bother to find me, as I will move farther away if you do."

A tear finally traveled down Peach's eye as the note ended.

Luigi lost his composure, and he cried on Matthew's shoulder as the doctor and the captain shook their heads sadly at the news of Mario's departure.


	20. Chapter 20: Dies Irae

Well, here we are. The long-awaited end of Part 1 of Symphonische Metamorphosen is now complete!

Now, the first couple of POV things in the chapter are mild, but about a quarter of the way into the chapter, it goes from PG to R: there is more language, it's bloodier, and it's so much more violent than anything you've seen around here. Basically put, assume that every bad thing that can happen to a person will happen in the latter half of the chapter (including death, by the way) and all of the things that happen in this chapter will affect everybody in the story once Part 2 comes around.

The second half actually fits the chapter title; in the Requiem mass (which has had settings by guys like Verdi, Berlioz, Mozart, Britten, etc.), the Dies Irae is the stuff that talks about judgement day and other things like that. You know the rest.

In other news, the Mahler 1st is coming along quite nicely here at the festival, and I'm really loving it. The Mozart piece makes me fall asleep, but it wouldn't be that bad if it wasn't for the fact that the string sections are being shortened for the Mozart and that I'm one chair away from not playing the Mozart. You know the rest.

I digress, though.

Here's the next chapter. Enjoy, and prepare to be extremely shocked.

* * *

Chapter 20: Dies Irae

"Matthew, why do you think Mario would have-a done such a thing?"

"We may never know, Luigi. But please, stop feeling sad about this! It hurts my heart to see you in such pain."

"I can't-a help it. I'm-a sorry."

Luigi proceeded to stare at the floor.

Matthew sighed as he thought about Luigi's mental state as of the entire day. Luigi had not been feeling good as the day had gone by, mostly lending to the generally depressed feeling that reverberated throughout the mansion that day. Nobody was happy, but poor Luigi was unbearably sad. The doctor was having trifles of his own, but Falcon had the doctor getting over it in a short while.

"I understand why you are like this," said Matthew. "If a sibling disinherited me and left the next morning, I would feel bad too."

"I don't-a understand why he denounced-a me, though," said Luigi.

"I guess that that is the worst part?" asked Matthew.

Luigi nodded very slowly.

"I do not know either," said Matthew. "That is something that makes the affair more frustrating to figure out for me, actually, but for you, I can understand why it would trouble you."

"Matthew, I don't-a know…" began Luigi. Whatever he wanted to say died on his mouth.

Luigi went to Matthew's bosom for a spot to cry on. There, he hugged the head of the tournament and cried as if nothing else existed.

"There, there, Luigi," said Matthew. "Everything will turn out all right. Maybe he will return and everything will be set straight."

"I don't-a think he will," said Luigi. "He usually sticks to his-a word…"

Matthew patted him on the back.

"It hurts…" muttered Luigi.

Luigi did not feel very consoled through the hug. The affair was too harmful to his psyche for anybody to understand.

After all, Mario had apologized to Luigi, only to take it back a short while later.

For the plumber, this was the most devastating part of the whole affair.

And unfortunately for him, nobody understood that. Not even Matthew understood it. This lack of understanding hurt Luigi even more, causing him to spiral down an eternal pit of depression.

Luigi figured that at this stage hope was a useless emotion; therefore, hope was absent in Luigi.

* * *

Captain Falcon sat in his dorm, glumly musing on the events of the night before and what Mario's departure could have meant. 

The doctor had not spoken to anybody all day; Falcon figured this would have been because of the fact that the doctor felt that he should have some time alone to think about himself and Luigi. Falcon was sure this was the case, but if it was not, then Falcon would understand either way.

The pilot realized then that somebody should have told Mario about the doctor's relationship with Falcon. Maybe then, nothing would have happened. Maybe then, Mario would still be sitting in the mess hall laughing up a storm with some friends of his. Maybe then, Luigi would not be crying his heart out in Matthew's office. Maybe then, both brothers could have been left in peace.

Falcon shook his head.

In a way, people from both sides were at fault; Mario was irrational, and the doctor was afraid of saying anything in fear of destroying Luigi. Falcon had heard from Peach that Link had told Mario that Luigi was in love with Matthew and that everything was fine between the brothers until Mario found out about the doctor. However, on Mario's side there were too many questions that could not be answered as to why he would think his own brothers would pursue an incestuous relationship with the plumber.

Falcon shook his head the third time that day.

He had a very bad headache from thinking too much.

Right then, the doctor entered Falcon's room. As the door gently closed, Falcon barely looked up from his position.

"Heya," said the captain weakly.

"Hello," responded the doctor in a weaker voice than Falcon had said hello.

"Ah tayake iyit y'all woyant tah tawk tah meh abayout soyomtheyin'?" asked the captain.

"Yes," said the doctor. "Falcon, there are times where you know that you really love someone, and yet when you want to push it farther, somebody finds out, and somebody's life is ruined."

"Luehgi?" asked Falcon.

"Yes," said the doctor. "Falcon, please forgive me for what I am about to ask you…"

"Yeyes?" asked Falcon.

"I… I want to keep the relationship from going to the next stage," said the doctor. "I want to clear my mind and know what I am doing before then. When I am ready for the next stage, I will let you know. Is that fine by you?"

Falcon understood that the doctor needed time, and until then he wanted Falcon to refrain from making advances of a sexual nature towards the doctor.

Thus, he slowly nodded his head.

"I thank you for understanding," said the doctor. "See you later…"

The doctor closed the door behind him, the door ever so softly settling into its natural spot.

* * *

The match lounge was unusually empty. Not even the children were having their regularly scheduled meetings that day because of the profound nature of Mario's departure. 

Thus, it made a perfect spot for Peach to think about many things while slowly crying her heart away, tears marring her sparse makeup as they traveled down their customary road.

The princess thought about why Mario would think his brothers would lust after him; in Peach's mind, the plumber should have known his brothers better than that. The princess had a feeling that the homophobia in Mario had gotten the better of him, yet to think that it would blind the plumber completely was beyond comprehension. Peach had a feeling that something else was hidden in Mario's mind, but exactly what this something was would forever remain a mystery.

Bowser watched from the doorway. He knew exactly what the princess was feeling; the king had felt bad for Luigi because of what happened to him. Of course, he felt sorry for Luigi for more than one reason, but the said reason was one he never wanted to mention for the rest of his life in fear of the pain and guilt of not having done something he should have.

Bowser really wanted to help Peach in her thoughts, but what could he do? He felt that positive relations had formed between their kingdoms when the reasons Bowser constantly kidnapped Peach came out, but Bowser felt it was not enough. After all, he figured Peach still reserved negative feelings for the king which she hid.

Bowser mentally sighed at the prospect that he could not help Peach. The princess was a nice woman; that much he had learned through the multiple kidnappings. In this, Bowser knew she deserved to have somebody there for her who would help her in everything that came to her mind, but he could not thanks to negative feelings towards him.

The koopa king walked away from the lounge to think about events.

After all, he needed to sort the events out himself too.

* * *

Night had fallen on the mansion. The stars were blocked by a large rain cloud that was colored gray. The only light outside was the occasional lightning bolt that crashed into the ground at an unbelievable speed. 

Ganondorf knew that of all nights to be looking at the garden, this had to be the worst.

The king stood in the mess hall, eyes gazing out of the window's protective sheet as he watched the raindrops. Falcon had been awake for quite some time during the night, and when Falcon got loud enough, Ganondorf woke up. Falcon had requested for some time alone, and even though it was slightly past the time where everybody would be asleep Ganondorf knew that when somebody wanted to be alone it was best that they be left alone.

After all, he did know what was happening around the mansion.

Footsteps prodded closer to him. Ganondorf turned to find the Altean prince walking behind the king.

"Marth?" asked Ganondorf. "This is strange of you to be up at this hour."

"I would say the same to you," said Marth. "But I understand that some people need to be alone. Falcon asked for such?"

"Yes," said Ganondorf.

"I see," said Marth as he walked next to Ganondorf. "I could not sleep. Everything that happened yesterday is all very complex."

"That is true," said the king. "Many of us are thinking more than is healthy for a human to attempt to find answers. Why is it that Mario had to make things so difficult on everybody?"

"I haven't the slightest idea," said Marth. "He might have been hiding something and that something might have transformed him into the homophobiac that he is, but why would he go so far as to think his brothers would go after him?"

"Something dreadful must have happened if that is the case," said Ganondorf. "Let us hope there is something we can do for Luigi."

"I would not know," said Marth. "He lives next door to me, and I thought I heard him cry himself to sleep just now."

"I would understand why," said Ganondorf as he turned to face Marth. "It is also to my understanding that everybody else would understand why."

Marth nodded. The king faced the window as he grabbed Marth's hand very subtly.

"Marth?" asked Ganondorf.

"Yes?" asked the prince as he looked up at Ganondorf.

"If I ever did something that would be disapproved by many people, would you leave my side?" asked Ganondorf.

The prince was very surprised by this question.

"Why do you ask?" asked Marth.

"Curiosity," said Ganondorf.

Marth nodded, thankful that the king was not going to lower himself to a level he was part of in his earlier days.

"In that case, I do not believe I would," said Marth. "I know you better than that. I would never cut off any friendly ties with you. You were there for me when I told you, so the least I could do is stand by your side whenever you are disapproved by people, even if I would look like an idiot if I did."

Ganondorf looked at the prince, earnestness clouding his vision.

"Marth…" said Ganondorf, voice soft and infinitely tender. "Thank you…"

The king clenched Marth's hand tighter, and reluctantly let it go.

"Come," said Ganondorf. "We ought to get some sleep."

The prince nodded, and the two of them exited the hall, went across the hall outside the match lounge, and walked up the stairs.

Marth stopped at his door, and the king stopped.

"I will be in my dorm if you need anything," said Marth. "Good night."

"Good night," said Ganondorf.

He turned to the direction of his room and walked to it.

As Ganondorf walked, a lightning bolt flashed across the sky. However, the bolt flashed in time for Marth to catch a glint of light flashing off of what looked like metal.

When the light cleared, Marth could make out the form Link approaching the king of the Gerudo tribe as quickly and stealthily as possible.

The prince perked his head as Link crept ever closer to the figure of Ganondorf.

Another glint of lightning flashed when Link was immediately behind the king. The light stayed long enough for Marth to witness Link raise his sword.

"Ganondorf, look out!" yelled Marth, not caring that he would wake up the other smashers in doing so.

In the darkness, Marth could make out Ganondorf turning around, seeing the Hero of Time and his blade, and sidestepping a slash just as Link sent the blade flying in Ganondorf's direction. A banging on a doorway and a flash of lightning was followed by a frustrated yell as Link tried again to slash at Ganondorf and missed as the king ducked under the weapon and took off running to his left. Link followed in hot pursuit.

Marth stood dumbfounded at what Link was trying to do.

"Oh my…" said Marth. "He could be killed!"

He ran promptly up to Bowser's dormitory, where he then proceeded to bang as loudly as he could on the door. The urge to yell at Bowser to wake up was very close, but Marth knew that banging was enough.

Eventually, the door opened and a koopa king with squinty eyes looked at Marth.

"Jesus, boy!" said Bowser. "Can't you—?"

"Link is trying to kill Ganondorf!" interjected Marth.

Bowser stopped saying what he was going to say, and Marth felt that his comment had woken up Ganondorf's friend. The prince could make out Popo rubbing his eyes in the room and sitting perfectly erect when the prince mentioned Link trying to kill Ganondorf.

"What?" asked the king.

"You heard what I said!" said Marth. "We need to do something!"

"But what?" asked Bowser.

"You distract him as best as possible," said Marth. "I'll wake up as many people as I can. Go. If Ganondorf dies I will never forgive myself."

Bowser nodded and ran down the hallway. Marth was about to knock on Peach's dorm when Popo pulled on the prince's pants.

"Can I help too?" asked Popo.

"I appreciate your want to help, but there is nothing you can do," said Marth. "Stay here."

"But—!" said Popo.

"No," said Marth. "Stay."

Marth left the door open as he went to knock on Peach's room.

When the prince was not looking, Popo snuck out of the room and ran as fast as he was able down the hallway.

* * *

Link charged blindly at Ganondorf as the Gerudo king ran as quickly as he could down the hallway that would lead him to the meeting room. When the door for the room appeared on his right, Ganondorf entered, opened the door, slammed it and locked it as quickly as possible. The Hero of Time was very persistent, so Ganondorf jumped away from the door just as the Master Sword poked its way into the doorway after a jangling of the doorknob. 

Ganondorf took this time to run through the room in hopes of making an escape route through the backstage door. Thus, he jumped on the long rectangular stage and ran down its length, disappearing into the left wing and entering the backstage door there just as Link kicked the door down.

"Come back here, you son of a bitch!" yelled Link.

Link was about to run after the Gerudo when he heard large footsteps plodding the hall, followed by a yell. Link jumped forward just in time to avoid being tackled by the king of the koopas. When the king quickly got up, Link brandished his sword.

"So you're in the party too, huh?" asked Link.

"Shut up!" spat Bowser. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"What am I doing?" asked Link. "I'm getting rid of proverbial scum, that's what!"

"You didn't even use the adjective right!" said Bowser. "Why are you—?"

Bowser eyed the Hero of Time raising his sword, and any attempt to say something else was thwarted as the koopa king jumped back to dodge the sword swipe that Link sent in Bowser's direction.

"And after I get rid of you, I'm going after that piece of dog shit to kill him," said Link.

This comment really angered Bowser. The king knew that Link and Ganondorf were in a rivalry, but even then the king could not understand why the Hero of Time would hold his rival in such low regard.

"Don't you _dare_ call Ganondorf a piece of dog shit, you arrogant bastard!" said Bowser, hate flaming in his voice.

After this, Bowser went in for a punch with his left hand. However, the king had failed to notice that Link had his shield out, so the hero blocked it and the next punch that sailed at him. Link then jumped on and off of a table, attempting to stab Bowser in the head with the Master Sword. However, this failed as Bowser jumped to the side.

Once this was done, Bowser lifted a chair and threw it at the hero. Link rolled to the side to dodge the chair as he made his way at the koopa king. Bowser ended up having to jump to the side or duck and then roll as quickly as possible as Link rained attempted blows on him.

Bowser ran as far as he could, grabbed another chair, and watched as Link dodged it as Bowser swung the chair at him.

Link ran at Bowser again, but an attempt at a running slash was blocked when the hero ran straight into the backrest of the chair Bowser held in his hands. This made contact with the hero's face, which then sent the hero plummeting to the ground. Bowser then had time to discard the chair so that he could run to another chair and grab it.

As he was ready to throw the said chair, Link stood up, wiped the blood that was flowing down his lips, and ran at Bowser. The koopa king held on to the chair and ran.

The chair was holding him down, however, and Link took this opportunity to nearly slash Bowser.

Just as he was about to do so, however, Link's legs gave in, and the man howled in pain.

When Link's form fell to the floor, he grabbed his shins and revealed Popo holding his hammer.

"What in…?" asked Bowser. "Popo! What are you doing here?"

The child did not respond. He simply held his hammer up. His grip shook a little, but he seemed pretty confident.

Link eventually stood up and faced the young Ice Climber.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" asked Popo. "Come and get it!"

"Sure!" said Link, a sadistic smile creeping on his face. "The loser sits in time-out for eternity!"

"Popo, no!" yelled Bowser.

He ran to interject, but Link had delivered the first slash by then and it was too late.

Popo jumped back, dodging Link's sword swipes and leaping in for a blow whenever possible. This fight continued for several minutes, with nobody gaining any real advantage.

The young Ice Climber did not need to know that "eternal time-out" meant that he could die facing the crazed Hylian. He was aware of the risk.

That was precisely why he hit the Hylian in the first place. He knew that the chances of him beating up Link until the Hand siblings did something about it were very slim due to the fact that he had lost his match against Link, but he knew that if he was the only casualty of it, then he had not died in vain.

Thus, the fight continued, with Popo being continually pushed back towards a wall while Link constantly swiped at Popo.

Over the course of the fighting, Popo had forgotten were the stage was, and when he bumped into it Link raised his sword. Popo rolled to avoid it, but when he stood to run, he tripped on his foot and fell face-first onto the floor.

Link wasted no time in jumping for the opportunity to do something, and thus he raised his sword and yelled.

"Popo!" yelled Bowser as he saw the spectacle. "Look out!"

The warning had come too late, however, for a sickening noise of decapitation rung in the room as Link brought the blade down on Popo's neck.

A nervous silence followed. Link slowly turned at Bowser.

The blood on the hero's blade told the king that Popo had been killed.

Tears began working their way down, both in sadness and frustration that he could not have done something good. He wanted to throw chairs at Link, but Popo was very close to him and he could not bring himself to harm a child.

"Sad?" asked Link. "Good. Time to grieve is over."

As Bowser cried in his standing position, Link charged at the king, preparing a slash.

The koopa king made no attempt to resist. Popo was a second son to the king, and if he died, Bowser did not know what he was going to do. That time came much sooner than the king expected, and so he did nothing to resist.

However, right as Link was about to slash Bowser, the king felt himself abruptly fall to the ground upon the whim of a force that the king could not control. A split second after he hit the ground, a second decapitation noise sounded with a womanly scream following the lost sound as long as was possible.

Bowser turned around and noticed Link grinding to a stop and turning around. When he did, he noticed Peach stood very close to where Bowser had been just a second ago.

The princess was lamenting noisily and tearfully as blood flowed freely from the spot where part of her right arm used to be.

Bowser's eye went wide, but before he could do anything else he noticed Dr. Mario and Falcon run into the room.

Link looked at the doctor, and he knew that he had done everything he could do since he knew the doctor would fix any wounds that he inflicted on Bowser.

Thus, Link let out a discouraged growl, leapt on the stage, and dashed down the walkway. He disappeared behind the left wing.

"Peach!" yelled the doctor, not noticing Link's getaway.

"Coyome bayack hear!" yelled Falcon as he ran after Link.

The doctor grabbed the antiseptic, a surgical tourniquet, and a winding of bandages that was in his suitcase as he ran to the princess, who knelt on the ground in pain clutching her arm where Link's sword went straight through. The doctor grabbed the tourniquet and applied it to Peach's arm, which in turn promptly stopped the flow of blood to the area.

"This is going to hurt," said the doctor simply, before applying antiseptic to Peach's wound.

Peach's howls of pain filled the room as the doctor applied the liquid substance on the wound. When the application was done, the doctor wrapped the bandages and the princess's wails slowly whittled down to sniffles and whimpers.

Bowser had by this time stood up and looked down at Peach and the spot where part of what used to be her right arm stood silently and unaware of the events going on in the mansion. The scarlet stain on the princess' glove was sickening, but the king was too concerned about why Peach had shoved the king in the first place to care about it.

Peach's vision was blurred by the tears that had come with the pain of losing her arm.

"Peach," said the doctor. "Are you all right?"

"Where's Bowser?" asked Peach. "Is he okay?"

The king was shocked beyond belief to hear the princess ask about Bowser's situation, for in his mind it would be the last question to appear in Peach's mind.

Still, he walked towards the princess to give her the knowledge she deserved. The princess looked up and said nothing for a while.

"Thank the lord…" said Peach, a smile coming to her face.

"Peach…" said Bowser. "W… Why…?"

Peach's smile intensified as she scooted towards the giant turtle hugging his leg with her left arm.

"You're a good man…" said Peach. "You care about people around you. Nobody deserves to die when they care… Especially you…"

This statement from Peach reduced king to more tears with the implications of what Peach had said; this time, though, the tears were of a different nature. Bowser knelt down to the princess' level and looked at her with as straight a face as he could pull with the profundity of what Peach had done and said.

"You…" said Bowser.

He was unable to say anything else. While the doctor looked on with eyes welling with tears, the king slowly wrapped his arms around Peach as the princess nestled on Bowser's chest inside an infinitely tender embrace with many more meanings than anybody could grasp.

* * *

Matthew shook his head as he rubbed the sleep off of his eyes and felt his head constantly drooping. Cowlicks had invaded his hair during the night, and he really felt that his night vision had seen better days. 

Something had been going on in the meeting room that had woken the head of the tournament up. First, it was the sound of chairs slamming on the floor, and then screams and slight knocking noises that were hard to discern. Unless a party was going on next door in the meeting room, Matthew had no idea what was going on.

He had not been getting any sleep lately anyway, given the fact that he was feeling bad for Luigi's state of mind at the moment. Poor Luigi was lost in regards to Mario, and Matthew knew he could be doing a much better job at consoling the plumber than he was; only problem was, he had no idea how to console people after what Luigi had gone through. After all, who would have to console a person through a disownment right after an apology?

"What's going on?" asked Cornelia's somewhat groggy voice behind Matthew.

"So I take it you heard the noises as well?" asked Matthew in a similarly tired voice.

Cornelia nodded very slightly, not having the energy to give a full nod.

"They aren't supposed to be partying at this time of night…" said Cornelia. "We're the only ones who can support a party."

"I do not know, Cornelia," said Matthew. "There's no music."

An abrupt knock came on the door that led to the meeting room.

"Oh god…" said Cornelia. "What could it be now?"

Cornelia walked to the door and opened it to find a deranged Link standing at the door, eyes flaming with hatred.

The female tournament master moved to ask the hero a question when he barged straight into the room, pinning Cornelia to the wall opposite the door with the Master Sword being held against the female's throat.

The shock of what Link had done woke both masters up very promptly.

"Link!" shouted Matthew. "Stop this—!"

"Where is he?" yelled Link at Cornelia. "Where is the son of a bitch?"

"Who's he?" asked Cornelia.

"You know perfectly well who 'he' is!" yelled Link. "Now tell me where he went or I will kill you!"

"Link, we just—" Cornelia began.

"Answer the goddamn question, you fucking bitch!" yelled the Hero of Time again as his sword started pressing against Cornelia's flesh.

Just as the deranged Hylian was about to put more pressure, however, he felt himself fall to the floor with a heavy shove from Matthew.

"Refrain from calling my sister a bitch, you dishonorable cur!" yelled Matthew.

Link stood up and faced Matthew.

"So you're in the club too, eh?" asked Link. "Fine. That just marks you for death."

Matthew knew he had no time to answer questions, so he jumped out of the way as Link slashed at Matthew as he turned to run to the other side of the room to find something to defend himself with.

However, at that particular moment Matthew was not Link's target. Cornelia knew she was in danger, and so she ran from her spot. However, before she could get far, she felt herself being seized by the deranged hero as he pulled out a knife from his boot.

Cornelia let out a final scream as the iron plunged into her throat. This sent her plummeting to the floor as Matthew turned just in time to witness Link injure his sister.

"No!" yelled Matthew as he stopped searching for something and ran to Cornelia as the blood ran down her throat.

By the time he had reached her, however, it was too late. Matthew looked into her eyes to find that Cornelia Hand had been killed by Link.

"No…" said Matthew, a tear gracefully traveling down the normally stoic man's face.

"Hmph," said Link. "Wimp."

This prompted Matthew to anger, over the insult and Cornelia. Thus, he found the strength to stand up and shove the man as quickly as possible.

"Fuck you!" yelled Matthew, summoning the worst language he could possible think of. "Fuck you, you goddamn asshole!"

He was about to kick Link in the crotch when Link did that to Matthew. The head of the tournament howled in pain as he brought his hands protectively over his area. Link took this time to kick the man in his side, which sent Matthew falling to the floor.

"Actually, I would say you're the asshole," said Link. "I'm better than you and there's nothing you can do about it."

"You are not…" said Matthew weakly. "At least I don't kill women the way you just did…"

"Screw that," said Link. "All I have to say is that she did things to me and I can get away with it. How does 'attacked me with a frying pan' sound to you?"

Matthew grunted as he turned to face the hero.

"You fucking asshole," said the head of the tournament angrily.

Matthew had by then recovered it, but he had faked being weak so that he could get an opening into the crotch.

The hero knew faking from real pain, though, so he craftily sidestepped it.

"I knew you faked it," said Link.

Matthew stood up.

"Shut up!" said Matthew. "I will not rest until justice is bestowed upon you!"

With this, Matthew lunged at Link and came into a wrestling hold, Link's sword pointed away from him as Matthew leaned into the hold. Link kicked Matthew in the shin, but he still held the hold. After kicking the other shin and getting the same response, Link kicked both shins hard by jumping, which then sent Matthew plummeting to the floor knee-first.

As Link was about to stab him, though, Matthew rolled out of the way and kicked the hero's legs from under him so that Link fell to the floor. The head of the tournament took this time to run to the cabinet he had been searching to find something to defend himself with. Link stood up quickly and followed in hot pursuit, and when he got close to Matthew, he pulled him to the floor so that he ended up on the other side of the room.

The former hand attempted to stand up, but his head collided with a medicine cabinet that sent him back down to the ground.

"Hmph," said Link as he approached. "You were weaker than I thought."

"Yes, but unlike you I only attack when I am forced to!" shouted Matthew. "You just go killing whoever the fuck you want simply for your pleasure!"

"Pleasure?" asked Link. "I don't think so. After all, I do need to get rid of a scumbag in this mansion."

Link drew the same dagger that had killed Cornelia and raised it into the air.

"And if I have to kill anybody who gets in my way, so be it."

Just as the knife was about to sail into Matthew's side, however, Link was shoved. The delirious Hylian turned and wasted no time in stabbing the individual in the stomach.

It had all gone by so quickly that Link remained perfectly still when both he and Matthew found Link's knife was embedded in Luigi's stomach.

"No!" yelled Matthew. "Luigi!"

Around this time, Ganondorf was briefly visible in the doorway that Link had entered through; however, this brief time was enough for Link to see the king.

"There he is!" yelled Link.

The Hero of Time drew the knife out of Luigi and was about to leave when he passed a cabinet that contained the items that Matthew was looking through. He grabbed the Browning 9 millimeter that lay on the floor of the cabinet and ran after Ganondorf.

Luigi fell to the ground on Matthew's lap.

"Luigi!" said Matthew as he took Luigi's head in his arms.

"Mario…" said Luigi in a barely discernible murmur.

"Mario?" asked Matthew. "What happened?"

"Why…?"

After saying this, the Italian plumber fell limp in Matthew's grip.

"Luigi?" asked Matthew softly.

No response came from the plumber.

"No…"

A tear found its way down Matthew's cheek, and many more followed as he let out a yell and brought Luigi's now lifeless face to his chest.

* * *

Ganondorf ran as quickly as he could. He knew that if he hoped to live, he had to dodge the hero's assault as best as possible. He had the feeling Link had found him again, but Ganondorf did not want to make false assumptions since he knew that if he assumed anything it would cost him his life. 

A gunshot sounded from behind the king, and Ganondorf heard a bullet whiz by his ear.

_Damn,_ thought Ganondorf. _He found me._

Ganondorf ran down the length of the hallway back into the meeting room. The king ran as a second gunshot rang out.

He barely noticed the small crowd that had gathered around in a certain part of the room; Ganondorf simply kept going. The eyes followed him as he ran by, and then they followed Link.

Ganondorf ran to the right into the mess hall, hoping to lose Link in the kitchen. The door was still open from when he talked with Marth earlier, and thus he ran through the door, a hand going out to close it behind him to buy him time to evade the hero.

Ganondorf jumped over the food counter and had just entered the kitchen when Link kicked the door down. The hero knew that there was only one place to enter other than the garden; given the fact that the thunderstorm had intensified over the past hour, Link knew that the garden was the last place the Gerudo king would expect to find refuge. Thus, he leapt over the food counter and had followed Ganondorf into the kitchen.

The kitchen was very dark when Link entered it, and he could not see any movement from what little light there was. This meant that the Gerudo must have gotten away through the door at the other end that led into the regular hallway. Link wasted no time in running outside.

However, Ganondorf had been hiding behind a stove in the kitchen. When Link left, he emerged and stealthily walked back towards the mess hall. However, as he walked, his arm bumped into a kitchen utensil that was subsequently sent to the floor along with a bunch of salad bowls. The clatter that followed gave the king away, so he ran out the door to the mess hall and out into the hallway.

After entering the hallway, though, a gunshot was heard and a bullet barely grazed Ganondorf's forehead. The king knew that his paranoia had worked against him, so he ran as quickly as he could across the hall by the match lounge so that he could access the stairway to the dorm hall.

Ganondorf pounded his way up the stairs, and two gunshots that were aimed at Ganondorf missed the king greatly as Link began to close the distance between them. When the top of the stairs was reached, Ganondorf opened the door and ran in as quickly as he could across the hallway. He briefly spotted Marth panting against the wall.

"Marth!" yelled Ganondorf as he ran towards him. "Come on!"

"No," said Marth. "He is after you! You need to keep running!"

"But Marth, you could be caught in the crossfire!" said Ganondorf.

The king's mistake came here, for as he approached Marth he stopped and offered a hand to the prince. The prince refused to take it physically urging Ganondorf to move.

Link took advantage of the opportunity, and while Ganondorf beckoned to Marth a gunshot sounded.

Ganondorf grabbed his leg, yelling in pain as the blood started to flow.

"Ganondorf!" yelled Marth.

Two more gunshots followed, and then Link had run out of ammunition.

The first shot hit the right side of Ganondorf's abdomen.

The second shot nailed Ganondorf in the stomach.

For Marth, time slowed down as he saw the mighty Gerudo king fall onto his back, arms flying wildly in the air as they failed to find a foothold.

"No!" yelled Marth as Ganondorf fell back.

The exiled prince jumped as Ganondorf fell back. He caught Ganondorf's head and the upper part of his torso and barely hoisted him off of the ground.

"Oh no…" said Marth.

Ganondorf's breathing became difficult as he opened his eyes to find Marth above him.

"Marth…" said Ganondorf.

"You… you fool…" said Marth. "You should have kept running!"

"No," said Ganondorf. "I…"

Here, Ganondorf began to have more difficulty breathing than he already was.

"I… I would not want… you to get… hurt…" said Ganondorf between gasps of air.

"Damn it!" said Marth. "If you were so concerned about me, why didn't you keep running?"

"Because… I… I… l…"

Ganondorf did not finish his sentence as the furrows of unconsciousness overtook him and his eyes closed.

"No!" said Marth.

Marth looked up to see if anybody was there. Upon seeing only Link with an expectant expression, the prince of Altea panicked.

"Doctor!" yelled the prince as loudly as he could. "Doctor! We have an injury! Ganondorf is wounded!"

"No," said Link, a triumphant smirk crawling on his face. "He's not wounded. He's dead."

The Altean prince refused to believe him.

"He is not dead," said Marth. "I refuse to believe it!"

"You only wish it was so in your dreams, my lad," said Link.

Link dropped the pistol he had held for the past several minutes and held his hands up.

"And now I am immortal!" yelled Link. "Nothing can stop me! I shall become known as a man who rid the world of evil!"

"Get him!"

This yell caught the hero off guard, but before he could do anything a swarm of policemen came from behind him. Four of them grabbed his arms, and while Link thrashed as if the world was about to end, Link was caught.

Suddenly Matthew appeared at the stairwell, cheeks red with the residue of tears and eyes squinting in a combination of sorrow and hatred.

"Take him away!" yelled the master of the tournament. "Take the mother fucking bastard away!"

"Damn you!" yelled Link at Matthew as the former was dragged by the policemen down the stairs. Link repeated the phrase multiple times so that it finally lingered when the hero had been shoved into the car and escorted straight to the jailhouse.

Marth knelt there as the medics came and surrounded him. He was oblivious to the medics taking Ganondorf out of his reach until one of them had walked over him in the rush to get the injured king to safety. When this happened, Marth reached out towards Ganondorf's body as it was being hauled by the medics. As the medics disappeared behind the door to the stairs, the Altean prince lowered his arms slowly.

At this point, the Altean prince had lost it; seeing a man usually so strong in character and person being brought down by a coward like Link who was just trying to garner more attention for himself was too much for Marth to handle.

Subsequently, the Altean prince broke down and cried loudly in the middle of the dorm hall with only Matthew to see him do it.

* * *

A/N: And thus ends Part 1. Yes, I know that cliffhangers are evil. 

Tell it to the plot bunnies.

Anyways, I'll be working on Part 2 soon, but don't expect it this week. Since Part 1 just ended I want a time frame for the ending of Part 1 to settle in before I start writing out Part 2, and stuff.

And after that, there's nothing more to do other than to sit and wait for the next part to begin.

See you guys soon!


	21. Chapter 21: Afterthought

And here begins Part 2. Expect lots of angst in this section of the story.

The outcome of the craziness that ended Part 1 is listed here, so if you're worried about Ganondorf being killed, you'll get an answer next. However, you have to worry about everybody else resolving their own problems. Remember that everybody has something wrong in their lives.

After this chapter, I think my chapters will tend to concentrate on one character. I believe the next one is an update on Mario and the people in his life, so you know where that leads. The trial also should be coming up after a few chapters of developing character, so you also know what goes next.

Mahler 1 was on last night! It went really well as far as I'm concerned. (Two ways you can tell that a performance was good is if the conductor is called back to the stage by the audience's applause more than once and by how soon the applause actually starts once the piece ends. In this case, the applause started a short while after the piece ended, and then the conductor was called out an extra time after going out to acknowledge the guys that had exposed solos.) Next at the festival, I have to play a Dvorak Cello Concerto with Lynn Harrell as the soloist along with a _Candide_ suite and the ever-so-famous _Night on Bald Mountain_. I really wanted to do _The Planets_ at first since the other orchestra here is doing that, but upon finding out that they're cutting Neptune because of a lack of a female choir, I lost much of my interest in it. (Eh. At least the bass oboe is being rented out by the festival, which is wonderful as far as authenticity reasons are concerned for Mars, Mercury, Saturn, and Uranus.)

You know the rest.

Here's the beginning of Part 2. Enjoy!

* * *

Part 2

Chapter 21: Afterthought

Popo Climber was dead. Luigi Mario was dead. Cornelia Hand was dead. Princess Peach Toadstool had lived, but had a difficult life coming before her. Ganondorf Dragmire was in a coma, with a waking time undetermined by the ER doctors.

The culprit for all five was the very same Link that had months earlier seemed like a saint to those around him.

Life was full of its little ironies.

Fox McCloud had woken up in the middle of the night two nights ago right when it happened. He had first heard the banging against his doorway, and then Marth knocked on his room to tell the kitsune that Link was trying to kill Ganondorf. Fox decided to talk some sense into Link, but by the time he had found the fallen hero he was being dragged to the police car.

He hardly expected three people to die, let alone the fact that Ganondorf was not one of the people who were confirmed to be dead by the medics.

Thus, the humanoid fox sat in his bed, white shirt off of his chest and on the bed with green pants still on his legs.

Now that Fox knew that the price would have been lower had he more actively intervened, he regretted his choice of simply talking to the former hero.

In some cases, Falco Lombardi really did have reason.

In this particular moment, a humanoid bird with blue feathers entered, flight uniform on and sapphire eyes looking towards Fox.

"Hey, Fox," said Falco. "Still thinkin' 'bout the other night?"

The fox sighed as he looked up at Falco.

"Yes," said Fox. "By now, I figure you know why."

"Yeah," said Falco. "You should'a just gone tah him and told him what an ass he was bein' by doin' what he did earlier."

"I don't think that would have worked," said Fox. "Marth told me that he was only trying to kill Ganondorf and that not even the deaths of three other people stopped him. Falco, how can you talk somebody out of murder when he gets rid of opposition without a second thought or any remorse?"

"Simple," said Falco. "You tell him, 'listen here, mate, if you don't stop beatin' the crap outta these here people I'm gonna introduce you to my two very loyal friends here; lefty, and right-o'."

Falco said the last three words as he raised his left and right fists.

The humanoid fox chuckled at Falco's bit of wry humor. However, it earned nothing more than a chuckle given the shocking nature of what Link had done.

"That probably would not have worked either," said Fox. "Matthew told us that he seemed invincible to pain that night. Perhaps if I had thought of something else…"

Falco shook his head and sat next to Fox on the bed.

"Look, man," said Falco. "Don't be so hard on yourself. Most of us went with what we thought was cool. A lot of us didn't set things straight, but it's the thought that counts, right?"

"You tend to feel better if you actually do something, though," said Fox as he looked at the ground. "Falco… I can't take this anymore…"

Falco shook his head and placed an arm on Fox's shoulders.

"Well, you know that if there's anything you need I'll be right here waiting for the word," said Falco. "You just say the word and I'm there. Hey, we didn't manage to do anything tah Link, but at least we can talk to each other about it, eh?"

The humanoid fox looked up at his avian friend.

"Yes," said Fox. "Thanks, man."

"No prob," said Falco.

The bird jumped off of the bed, but as he did he realized that he had sat on Fox's shirt. Fox noticed this, and Falco's eyes went wide.

"Oh, come on!" said Fox. "You really don't take sitting on my stuff as a mortal sin, do you? I have plenty of extras in the armoire."

Falco let out a hefty sigh, after which he still went to the shirt to check it out.

"Was this just washed?" asked Falco.

"No," said Fox.

That was all that needed to be said, as the avian immediately set to work undoing the creases that had formed by hand.

* * *

Matthew sat in his office, eyes watery with tears. 

Life had been cruel to him again; it turned him into a hand, and it took away both his sister and his lover. Matthew had cried himself to sleep the last two nights.

True, Luigi's loss was something that he would normally get over, but his loss and Cornelia's loss were both hard on him. After all, he had lost his confidante and the person who he felt would be his reason for living once Cornelia left the world.

He had never expected both to die by the same hand, let alone on the same day.

Matthew was particularly disturbed by Luigi's final words. The head of the tournament had been feeling bad enough about Luigi, but then he had to figure out why Luigi mentioned Mario in his final words. Matthew knew that Mario was very secretive about the origins of his homophobia and he was certain that Luigi had never known, but why didn't Luigi ask Mario the question before he left?

Matthew could not feel but help that this would be part of a bigger picture that Luigi had anticipated, but he knew that the plumber was not very willing to die to get a message across to anybody, let alone his little brother.

The head of the tournament sat in his chair, filing through paperwork but also thinking about the multitudes of things that had arisen with Link's rampage in the mansion.

The former hand shook his head. He needed justice on Link. Of course, he knew the trial was set to occur in a week, but in the meantime he had to talk with the lawyer representing him and everybody else whose lives were affected by what Link did.

The fact that Link was being extremely arrogant about what he did also bugged Matthew to no end; Link believed that because he had tried to rid the world of an evil scumbag the other lives he had taken or otherwise ruined were justified. He also said he had a good justification for attempting to murder Ganondorf, but he insisted that he save the reasons for the trial.

Matthew shook his head as an ache developed.

* * *

"Why? Why did he have to die?" 

"Nana! Settle down! Dwelling on something never saved anybody, and it won't save you! Now snap out of it!"

"Ness! Stop being so insensitive!"

"Yeah! See? You're making her cry more already!"

"Hey! She's mourned Popo for too long!"

"Shut up! You'd cry for two days straight if you had lost a brother, so shut up and get lost!"

"No! I have a point!"

"That what? People aren't allowed to be sad whenever the people closest to them die?"

"Yeah! Young Link is right! By that logic, you would have told her to stop crying immediately after she found out! Now shut up and leave!"

Ness pouted and left the match lounge.

Poor Nana had been inconsolable after Popo's death. Unfortunately for her, Ness made it all the worse for her, even though she knew he was not trying to make life difficult for the ice climber. Bowser Jr. and Young Link were always reprimanding Ness, and for once they got Ness away from Nana for a few seconds.

Young Link shook his head as his eyes followed Ness. The group had ran to Bowser's room after they were informed by Marth hoping to play a game or two of Monopoly with Popo while the trouble diffused below, but when Popo was not there the four of them searched the mansion, only to find a very bloody scene in the meeting room where Peach's arm lay on the ground and where Popo's severed head lay next to a chair.

Poor Nana had lost it afterwards, for she was on the ground crying when she saw Popo's head.

And since then Nana had really not stopped crying, which was why Ness felt as if he needed to say that Nana was going too far in her grieving.

After Ness left the room, Link's younger self looked at the young koopa.

"Seriously, man," said the young Hylian. "Given that he's psychic, reads minds, and listens to stuff like _Duke Bluebeard's Castle _where the psychological content is immense, you'd think he'd know better."

Bowser Jr. nodded. The two of them then turned to Nana, who knelt on the ground crying her heart away. Bowser Jr. went to her first, and Young Link stood by him. The young koopa then put his hand on Nana's shoulder, prompting Nana to look up at the two of them.

"It's okay Nana," said the young koopa. "We're here. Cry all you want."

Nana slowly snuggled up to the two of them, prompting a small group hug between the three children.

"We won't leave you alone," said Bowser Jr. "That's a promise."

Nana's crying seemed to lessen in their hug.

The first step had been taken towards consoling the young ice climber, and Young Link did have to say that he felt that Nana would be happy with the two of them.

Something in him told him that she would lean towards the koopa, though.

In Young Link's mind, though, he figured that Bowser Jr. was a better person for Nana anyway, so in the end, the boy was confident that everything would work out in Nana's favor.

* * *

Zelda sat in her bed, hands cradling her head. 

Why did Link have to be so stupid?

The princess had asked herself this question so many times that her head ached from the repetitiveness of the phrase.

However, nobody could blame her.

After all, she had reason to think about it so many times.

Marth had knocked on her door two nights earlier, giving her the news that would change her opinion of Link forever; this was that Link was trying to kill Ganondorf. The princess knew that Ganondorf was a problem, so she decided to stay out of Link's way for fear of the fact that he was doing the right thing and that he would really hurt her if she stood against him.

She had no idea that by doing so, three people other than Ganondorf had been killed by Link.

The princess understood that the attempted murder of Ganondorf was justifiable, but to think that others were killed set the princess in mental disarray. After all, what justification would Link use for them?

Right at this moment, the door to the princess' dorm opened, and in came the humanoid fox.

"Hey, Zelda," said Fox. "You okay in here?"

Zelda looked up to find him there, after which she looked at the floor.

"Why would Link do what he did?" asked Zelda.

"To get to Ganondorf, of course," said Fox. "Bowser told us how ruthless he was to do that."

"I know," said Zelda. "Why would he have been so ruthless, though? I fail to understand why he killed a woman and a child so he could exact justice!"

"Are you even sure that Ganondorf was evil?" asked Fox. "I heard from Marth that they were getting along well during the tournament and that Ganondorf had shown a softer side before Link attacked him."

"Fox, do not play games with my mind," said Zelda. "I know what that man did to Hyrule, and if Link will be unrelenting towards him, then so be it."

"That's not the justification he gave to us," said Fox.

"Then what is it?" asked Zelda.

"We don't know," said Fox. "He only tells us that it's what what Ganondorf did to Hyrule and something more. 'Something more' instantly tells that there was another motive for attempting to kill Ganondorf."

Zelda nodded, and then looked at Fox with solemn eyes.

"Are people asking if I'm acting as a witness for the trial?" she asked.

"Yes," said Fox, leaping onto Zelda's bed. "There are plenty of questions about that from everybody."

"Then let them know that I will not," said Zelda. "What can I say about him that can redeem him?"

"Then you won't cite on his side?" asked Fox.

"No," said Zelda. "I'm not citing for anybody."

The humanoid fox expressed shock upon hearing this.

"Why?" asked Fox. "Simply being at the trial—"

"Is enough," continued Zelda. "I cannot raise weapons for him, and yet what information do I have to criminalize him? Besides, I want to see if this will change his outlook on life…"

"Why do you say that?" asked Fox.

"Link has been an ass during the past few days," said Zelda. "I want to see if his time at the defendant's stand will change his mind about a few things…"

"I see," said Fox. "In any event, I think I'll leave now. Good night to you, princess."

"Good night," responded Zelda as the fox jumped off of the bed and walked out of the door.


	22. Chapter 22: A New Home

And here's the next chapter.

The festival is fun here. I had my Lynn Harrell concert just now, and it went pretty well. Next up on the list of concerts that I have to play starts off with the Brahms _Variations on a Theme of Haydn_, after which I accompany Sirena Huang in the Mendelssohn violin concerto and I go through the _I Got Rhythm_ variations before ending the concert with the ever so famous _Háry János Suite_. You know the rest.

There are sneak references in the chapter to other things. If you can guess what the references are, you get cookies! (And the _Wozzeck_ mention is not one of the references.)

Also, there's a lotta Spanish in one part of the chappy. I'll translate in my response to your reviews.

Anyways, you know the rest.

Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 22: A New Home

A generally depressing atmosphere hung over the city air, smoke flying out of the various smokestacks of the area as factories pumped out their products at a frequency unaccounted by men. Concrete and brick buildings were seen in the background.

For being in a city that was named after a heavenly entity, it sure failed to match up to its name.

Pit was walking home from his work as a manager at the nearby factory. He had moved to the bustling city of Die Engelein three years ago, fresh out of four years of college with a major in business. Looking back, Pit felt that in terms of living environment he had moved to the worst possible place, but in terms of the rest of his life he felt that a better decision could not have been made.

The angel was twenty-five years old, chestnut hair riding on the top of his head with wings white as a cloud on his back. Some people jeered Pit for his wings, but otherwise one could not have come across a better-looking man. He was also pretty skilled with negotiating with people, which is one thing that made him a likeable person.

The angel was usually straight faced as he walked home. He had nothing else to do in the part of the city he was in unless he was taking his laundry to the public Laundromat after work, and Tuesday was not Pit's laundry day. Therefore, he went to get to his next thing to do.

As he walked amidst a large crowd, he could not help but notice all of the homeless people in the vicinity. He had gotten to know the faces from walking the same route home every day for three years of his life; sometimes, he had made acquaintances with them and even had a friend by the name of Wario who was originally homeless before Pit met him and took him into his apartment and gave him confidence to eventually get a job as an oboist with the Engelein Philharmonic Orchestra.

The two of them had gotten along after Wario bumped into Pit accidentally during rush hour. The two of them made acquaintances, and when Pit was in the park four days later he was surprised to see Wario preparing an oboe reed by a park bench. They had met every Tuesday afterwards to the point that Pit offered his friend a place to live, which Wario took gladly. Neither of them regretted the decision, as the angel then instilled confidence in Wario to go after his dream of becoming an oboist with a large orchestra. This, Wario managed to attain.

The angel kept his straight face going as he thought of this as he went the long way home.

His abode was a rather large apartment in the heart of the city that he had gotten and managed to pay for mostly because of his earnings as a manager and with Wario's job as well. This was good for Pit, as both their salaries were high. Still, Wario had seen the effects of what spending too much could do, so he advised Pit to save his money. This advice went a long way in terms of their cost of living, as their bills seemed to cost less than they normally would have otherwise. This was good, considering the cost of keeping both men in a house as long as they did.

The angel brought out a small package wrapped with red wrapping paper out of his briefcase as he walked towards an apartment building on his right. His girlfriend Palutena lived in that building. She was wonderful, and while her job at a dress store often gave them friction between the two, they were both very much in love with each other. That Tuesday happened to be Palutena's birthday, and Pit decided to stop by the apartment to see if she was there so he could give her his present.

As Pit entered the doors of the building with the gift in hand, he felt that his life could not be more peaceful.

He walked to the elevators and pressed the up button.

* * *

"_¡__No me digas!_"

"_Palutena, __¡__tú sabías más que nunca que ella iba a tener un razón por odiar este señor!_"

"_¡__Ay, por favor madre! __¿Quién había que podía decir que él iba a violarla?_"

"_Muchas personas deben saber de ver como él miraba a ella. ¿Verdad?_"

"_Madre, cuando él se miro a Mariequita, ella tenía un amor tan grande. ¡Siempre usaba palabras que ella nunca usaba para describirlo! Dime algo; ¿puedes decir que él quería violarla cuando esto está verdad?_"

A short pause followed this question.

"_Creo que no…_"

Palutena had been talking to her mother in her apartment about a fellow employee at the dress store the younger woman worked at. The poor woman had nearly been acquaintance raped before some stranger on the side of the road found them in the alley and reported it to the police. Thankfully, the doctors found no traces of anything that would cause pregnancy, so Mariequita had been lucky.

Palutena shook her head, long emerald hair creating a matching cascade as she returned to vacuuming the floor. She had to take care of her mother ever since she had been paralyzed from the waist down. It was a pain, really, especially given that her mother would ramble on and on about the same subject for a long time. Over time, though, she had learned to bear it, mostly thanks to the fact that the old woman could still cook.

As Palutena vacuumed, the doorbell was audible over the loud whirr of the contraption.

"_¿Quién es?_" shouted Palutena's mother.

"It's me!" said somebody on the other side of the door that lay on Palutena's right.

"Oh!" said Palutena. "Pit, I'm coming!"

She turned off the vacuum cleaner and walked to the doorway. Upon reaching it, she opened it to find the love of her life at the door.

"Pit," said Palutena. "You come here to say what I think you will say?"

"Of course," said the angel as he presented a box wrapped in red. "Happy birthday, Palutena!"

"Oh, Pit!" said Palutena as she jumped into Pit's arms. "You remembered!"

"Well, would you expect me to forget my girlfriend's birthday at all?" asked Pit.

"No," said Palutena as she jumped out of Pit's arms and lightly took the package from his hands. "It is even my favorite color! How sweet of you!"

"_¡__Oye, Palutena!_" yelled Palutena's mother from inside the apartment. "_No puede estar en el cuerpo de una puerta por dos minutos; ¿aprendes?_"

"_¡__Sí, madre!_" answered the young woman. "_¿Podemos hablar afuera?_"

"_Sí, hija,_" said Palutena's mother.

Palutena nodded and walked outside of her apartment, closing the door as she walked into the hallway.

"So how was work today?" asked Palutena.

"It went pretty well," said Pit. "Needless to say, Hartman was acting up as he usually does, so he's getting ever closer to getting the boot."

"You are going to give it to him, no doubt?" asked the young woman.

"If I don't do it, it would be unfair to everybody else," said Pit.

"In that case, it is quite understandable," said Palutena. "How is Wario doing?"

"He's fine," said Pit. "I hope he's prepared for the coming production of _Wozzeck_ that starts tomorrow night."

"That is quite difficult to play, yes?" asked Palutena.

The angel responded to this with a nod.

"He actually showed me the part," said Pit. "It's crazy stuff; that much is certain."

"Oh dear," said Palutena. "I do hope he can play it."

"He says that the notes are easy once you learn them," said Pit. "The hardest part of that is that he has to count like crazy since the rhythms are everywhere."

"Ah," said Palutena. "I wonder if you are still open for dinner tomorrow…"

"Yes," said Pit. "I'm still open. I just need to leave reservations and we're good to go, right?"

"Of course," said Palutena.

"Anyways, I went up to wish you a happy birthday," said Pit. "I better be going now; Wario's probably pretty hungry right now."

"Right," said Palutena. "Goodbye, my love."

"Bye," said Pit. After this, he bowed and walked towards the stairs.

The smile that had stayed on Palutena's face through the scene remained as she looked to Pit walking down the hall. She became dreamy, forgetting about everything else as she focused on him.

Pit was a very sweet man, and if anybody said otherwise she would look them in the eye and tell them what she knew.

The silence was broken by Palutena's mother.

"_¡__Palutena!_" yelled her mother from other side of the doorway. "_¡__El piso no esta limpiado todamente!_"

The young woman snapped out of her stupor.

"_¡Estoy viniendo!_" she called from the other side of the doorway as she turned the knob to enter.

* * *

Pit opened the door to the apartment building where his home was and entered. He felt quite refreshed as he entered.

"Hey, Pit!" called a short man who wore armor and a cape as Pit entered the door. The short man had bat-like wings beneath the cape, though nobody liked to mention them since he rarely used them. He stood behind the front desk that stood to Pit's left as he entered the building. The elevators were on the other wall, which was quite a walk away in the large size of the lobby. The lobby was empty, which was really quite usual since nobody really stopped to listen to the hotel lobby music that constantly played.

"Afternoon, Meta," said Pit. "Anybody new come around here?"

Meta leant on the front desk as Pit stopped by.

"Sort of," said the landlord. "I saw a rather strange person walk in. He said he wanted a room, and he didn't elaborate on his past when I asked him where he was from. He looked like he desperately needed a home."

"Really?" asked Pit.

"Yes," said Meta. "I think there's something in the past that he's trying to get away from."

"I can see him living here a long time…" said Pit sarcastically.

"You are correct with that," said Meta with a chuckle. "Anyways, I gave him the room next to yours. I trust it's alright with you?"

"Course it is," said Pit. "I'd be a fallen angel if I minded new neighbors."

The landlord nodded as the angel walked to the elevators.

"I hope you two do get to be good friends," said Meta.

"I hope so too," said Pit as he hit the button of the arrow pointing up. "I'll be seeing you later then!"

"Right!" said Meta.

The elevator door opened, and Pit stepped inside.

* * *

"Well, I don't-a see how that is-a possible!"

"What do you mean, you don't see how that's possible? Stay out of my way and I stay out of yours."

"But I don't-a know what you are talking about!"

"You know bloody well what I'm talking about!"

"But I—"

"Don't wanna hear it!"

Mario was having a hard time with his new neighbor; he assumed that he knew everything about the plumber that there was to know. His neighbor just happened to be able to play a musical instrument, and then he warned Mario not to get in his way. Why the man assumed this was beyond the plumber.

The neighbor in question was a rather plump man with a mop of brown hair not unlike Mario's own hair. He had a black moustache that was shaped like a lightning bolt, and he had a large nose above the moustache died a somewhat exaggerated shade of lavender. He wore normal clothing above his plump figure.

Mario, too, had changed appearances so nobody would recognize him to turn him into the hand siblings; now he donned no cap, revealing his hair. He also dumped his normal clothing in favor of an ocean-colored shirt that matched with a pair of pants that were black as the night.

The hallway they were arguing in was pretty well-lit. An orange paint covered the walls, pictures of exotic fruits peppering the wall at odd intervals.

"No, really," said Mario. "I don't-a know what you're talking about! What do you-a mean, 'stay out of-a my way'?"

"You know what I mean!" said the man.

"No I-a don't!" said Mario. "Do you really-a think I would have-a said that for the past-a ten minutes if I did?"

"To annoy me," said the other man.

"Why would I want-a to annoy you?" asked Mario.

"Because you can," said the other man.

"Wario, please," said a second voice that was coming from behind Mario and approaching ever so quickly. "Stay quiet for a second."

Mario turned around to find a man wearing a grey suit with a black tie and white angelic wings sprouting from behind his back. He was walking towards the two of them and then stood next to them.

"Now, why are you yelling at the new neighbor?" asked the angel, looking at the man whose name was apparently Wario.

"He's trying to get my chair!" said Wario, pointing a finger accusingly at Mario. "I know it!"

"Oh, god," said the angel.

The angel then turned to the plumber, apologetically looking at him.

"I'm so sorry, sir," said the angel. "I believe he's mistaking you for somebody else. You don't play oboe with the Engelein Philharmonic Orchestra, do you?"

"Wha—?" asked Mario. "I don't even-a play an instrument, let alone in a philharmonic!"

A small silence pervaded the area.

Then, the fat man stepped forward.

"Oh dear…" said Wario. "I'm so sorry about that! You see, the third oboist at my orchestra is an annoying son of a bitch who tries to do everything possible so that he can move up a chair and do things, and he looks just like you."

"Oh," said Mario. "Well, I-a guess mistaken identity cases do occur…"

"They do," said the angel. "Anyways, I think we should introduce ourselves. I'm Pit, and this is my roommate Wario."

Pit looked at Mario, waiting for a response.

"Massimo," said Mario.

Aside from changing his garb, the plumber had also decided to give himself an alias to avoid suspicion of being the famous plumber who had rescued Peach countless times. He wanted nothing to do with the two men who used to be his brothers, and to make sure of that he would take every step possible to avoid them.

"Well," said Wario. "I guess we will make good friends, eh?"

"Yes," said Pit. "Nice meeting you!"

"Same-a here," said Mario.

The plumber turned on his heels, and then unlocked his door and entered his room.


	23. Chapter 23: Venus, The Bringer of Peace

Hello, children.

The trial is coming in a bit! I really want to write it out as quickly as possible, since I want to get to a certain scene with Zelda... (What that scene is, you'll have to wait and find out.)

I have to do a pops concert tonight here at the festival. I really don't want to, but I've been having fun during the rehearsals anyway because my stand has intentionally messed up and the conductor is too stupid to notice me and my standpartner turning the _Star Trek_ medley we're doing into _Atmosphéres_ or playing things with the wrong bowing technique. The conductor really is an idiot though; during the first rehearsal for pops, he made a big deal about the fact that the only suspended cymbal was on the drum set, and instead of asking the percussionist to creep closer, he made one guy hold a cymbal and made a very rude comment ("Oh, what a low budget festival.").

In other news, the Bowser/Peach subplot resolves itself in this chapter. You won't hear much from their side of the story until the ending, so you know where that leads.

I still haven't rehearsed _Háry János_ yet thanks to the fact that one of the pops rehearsals was rescheduled during the normal rehearsal time.

The chapter title is another music reference; this time, it's the second of a certain Holst suite. If you don't know what that suite is, may your god save you from all of the rabid music listeners that love the suite.

I've blabbed enough. Here's the next chapter.

* * *

Chapter 23: Venus, The Bringer of Peace

Peach sat in the match lounge, looking around with teary eyes.

The poor princess left the lights off as she entered, which thus amplified the might of every shadow in the room. Each object seemed to be something it was not quite successfully, mimicking everything that the princess knew to be evil.

Life had started taking a turn for the worse for her that day when she went out to Smash City to buy some bread for the group. When she entered, she noticed a lot of people look at her. Of course, she was Princess Peach Toadstool, but they looked at her missing arm more than at the actual princess.

The poor princess had a hard time signing for the credit card, but what greeted her when she exited the store saddened her to a great extent.

Once she left the store, she had to deal with the countless pairs of eyes that were looking at her shortened arm. One of them actually looked at her very lustfully. Thankfully, she had quickened her pace, but she knew that the looking never stopped.

This went on for a while as she walked. Even when she entered the taxi to avoid the eyes she had to deal with them. It was frightening.

The driver noticed this and tried everything in his power to make Peach comfortable; however, Peach still felt the eyes on her. This veil of eyes followed her out of the city and into the country that led to the mansion.

And then, when she left the taxi to enter the mansion, she encountered a group of boys playing on the side of the road next to the mansion's driveway. When she walked towards the gate, she noticed the children staring at her. She did not show it, though, so she swiped the card to get through the gate.

The conversation that ensued was too much to bear.

"Who's the lady standing there without an arm?" asked the smallest one.

"I don't know," said the largest one. "I bet she's one of those hookers that's supposed to make people depressed by looking at her."

"No!" said a third one. "I bet she's a monster. I bet she's a monster in disguise."

"Guys, don't you know what an amputee is?" asked a fourth one.

"Gee, I don't," said the second one. "And I don't think we want to either. Especially since they're all monsters no matter what they call whatever those 'amputee's are or whatever."

The last comment bit into her mind so harshly that upon entering the mansion, she ran to the lounge and cried her heart out.

The reality of what had happened was too much to bear for her.

She had to face the truth; people were going to regard the poor princess as a freak for the rest of her life. Nobody would accept her or get used to the loss of her arm. Nobody.

The reality was too shocking for the princess. Thus, she stayed in the lounge and cried her heart out.

* * *

Dr. Mario sat at his desk in the infirmary, looking at a photograph of his family that was taken at a county fair a long time ago.

In the photograph, Mario sat on top of his mother as he cradled a plush animal he received as a prize. The doctor and Luigi were both tugging to their mother's skirt as they ran along, the doctor clinging on so he could keep up with his mother and Luigi with a finger pointing to the next attraction that he wanted to go to.

The picture was taken quite unexpectedly by a freelance photographer. They were surprised by the flash of a camera, but the artist said the photograph looked like it came out great, and that he promised to send a version to their home. Two months later, that photo arrived.

It was a wonderful photo, really. The artist had the right idea when he applied sepia tone to the image, and the image itself was very joyous.

The doctor thought it ironic that he was looking at the family in an imitation of its happiest moment when the family was now in tatters; since the photograph had been taken, the boy on his mother's shoulders found out his brothers were gay and left them both, the boy pointing at an attraction was killed by a deranged Hylian, and the mother had to support herself by the timid boy's money that he sent monthly and by being a whore.

It was ironic how life could be so cruel to a group of people.

At this point, the door opened and in walked the king of the koopas.

"Hey," said Bowser.

The doctor looked up.

"Hello," said the doctor. "Something happened?"

"No," said Bowser. "I was just wondering where Peach was. I haven't seen her in a long time."

"Poor thing," said the doctor. "She told me about what those kids said about her being a monster."

"She being a monster?" asked Bowser.

The doctor nodded.

"Jesus!" shouted Bowser, arms going up in the air. "Who the hell do they think they are? She lost that arm to save me! You hear? Anybody who loses a limb to save somebody else's life is a real hero! Especially if they saved somebody because of the goodness of their heart!"

"That is true," said the doctor. "She has not been seen much since then."

"Perhaps those kids got to her," said Bowser. "All the more reason I have to go talk to her."

"Why do you say that?" asked the doctor as his face put on a curious expression.

"I need to go tell her that I am sorry for kidnapping her all of those times," said Bowser. "I also need to tell her that I was shaken by what she told me when she first lost her arm. I never thought a princess would do that for me given my background with her, but now I know she'll do anything for somebody in need, even a former enemy like me..."

"Well then, I can see why you'd want to," said the doctor. "But no, I haven't the slightest clue where she is…"

"I see," said the king. "I'll go find her then."

Bowser stepped out of the office as the doctor looked back at the photograph.

The photograph was a great work of art, but this proved a point; after what Link did, everybody's reality was shaken. For some, they had to deal with a more sadistic Hylian; for others, they had to deal with a loss.

The doctor put his head down on his desk and cried as discreetly as possible, not so much for Luigi as much as for every shattered conception that hung in the air.

* * *

The first place Bowser looked was in the dorm hall. When she knocked on Peach's door, Zelda answered it and told him that Peach had not been in her dorm the entire day. Bowser nodded and walked on his way, not wanting to disturb the Hylian much due to what she must have been going through.

Then, Bowser looked at the mess hall, but did not find her there either. When he asked Young Link where she was, he told the koopa that he had not seen Peach all day.

Bowser looked into the meeting room next, but he did not find her there.

Then, when he went to the match lounge he heard some crying and the lights were off. Almost instinctively Bowser's hand went to the light switch and flipped it.

Peach was huddled on a couch, alone and with the residue of tears on her face. Her makeup was marred on her face, and her dress was wrinkled in several places.

"Peach?" asked Bowser.

The princess did not stir.

"Peach?" Bowser repeated the question as he walked into the room.

"Leave me be…" said Peach, almost inaudibly.

"What did you say?" asked the koopa, head leaning closer to the princess.

"Leave me be…" repeated Peach in the exact same tone but louder.

"Leave you be?" asked Bowser as he stood above Peach. "Why?"

"You know why," said Peach. "Now go."

"But Peach, it's not good for you to sit in the dark waiting for the end of the world," said Bowser. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"I'm getting away from everybody," said Peach.

"Why would you want to get away from anybody?" asked Bowser.

A short silence took hold of the room. Peach shifted her posture on the couch.

"Because I'm a monster," said Peach.

Bowser was not very surprised when he heard Peach call herself a monster; after all, the doctor had told him about the kids that called her a monster.

"What makes you think that?" said Bowser.

"The cashier looked at me," said Peach. "The people looked at me. The children looked at me. Everybody looked at me. But they looked at my arm more than at me."

"Yes, but that doesn't mean you're a monster," said Bowser.

"Yes it does!" said Peach. "People won't look at me for who I am anymore…"

"Peach don't say that," said Bowser. "I'd—"

"And tonight, it shall end," said Peach standing up with her hands in front of her. "I'm going to the tallest building in Smash City to jump off of it tonight."

"Peach!" yelled Bowser. "Are you crazy? You can't do it! Think about your kingdom for Christ's sake!"

"They won't care about me either," said the princess.

"Yes they would!" said Bowser. "I'm sure they'd understand."

"My father is an amputee of war," said Peach. "He lost his hand in battle. What am I? A princess who lost her arm during a killing spree. Which one would you follow?"

"Peach, don't say that!" said Bowser. "That's not true!"

"Then who will care for me for who I am?" asked Peach.

Bowser compulsively grabbed the princess and pulled her into a hug that surrounded her with big, scaly arms. The first thing he noticed was the surprise in the princess' bloodshot eyes.

"I will!" said Bowser. "I know why you lost that arm perfectly well, and I'm not about to let you die because of it! People are stupid if they consider you a monster! You're a beautiful person, Peach; don't let anybody else tell you that!"

A long silence pervaded the lounge.

Then, a sob came from the princess as she wrapped her arms around Bowser.

"Thank you…" said the princess. "Thank you… for accepting me…"

"There, there," said Bowser. "I'm here. I'm here."

With this, Bowser knelt to Peach's level so that the princess could cry on Bowser's shoulder.

Peach cried, not out of sadness but out of joy that somebody could accept her for who she was. The fact that it was her former nemesis that told her what he did amplified the magic and the might of the moment.

The princess stood with her head on Bowser's shoulder as an old hatred was shed and immediately replaced by the guiding light of friendship.


	24. Chapter 24: Premonition

The festival is slowly beginning to draw to a close. I don't know about a whole lot of people here, but for me it doesn't feel like the festival is going to end soon. It's wierd.

Also, for some reason that I can't determine, the rosters for the final concert were posted yesterday even though _Háry János _doesn't go on until Friday. Anyways, in the final concert I do the Bacchanale from _Samson and Dalila_ (Saint-Saëns, obviously) and one of the suites from the Prokofiev _Romeo and Juliet_. The other guys do _Petrushka_, but truth be told, the popular pieces of Stravinsky's Russian period aren't the best ones in that period. (H.W. runs from the angry _Rite of Spring_ fans.) It isn't even the orchestration that I have, so that's minus points for them.

You know the rest. The trial comes up next chapter!

And after all that blabbing, here's the next chapter.

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 24: Premonition

A knocking on wood was heard. When nobody responded, the knocking returned, only louder this time.

Matthew looked up, sleep-deprived eyes gazing towards the doorway.

"Come in," he said weakly.

The door opened, and in strutted Falco and Fox.

"Heya, chief," said Falco. "How's it goin'?"

"Terribly," said Matthew.

"Is that so?" asked Fox. "You know, you really ought to go outside of your office more. Maybe you'll feel better if you do."

Matthew had been in his office for the past two weeks leading into the trial. The poor man had two losses to grieve; that of his sister Cornelia, and that of his lover Luigi. However, as big as that reason was Fox knew that Matthew had a very large agenda to attend to; he had to arrange the funeral, he had to hire the lawyers representing his side of the story of what happened during that night, and he also had to make sure that Ganondorf was in stable condition, knowing that Marth would never forgive himself from what Bowser had told the former hand of the events.

"Fox, you fail to understand my job," said Matthew. "I have to do too much to go outside."

"We know that that's bull crap," said Falco. "We know ya got things tah arrange, but we also know ya need tah cry over your losses. We could help ya through your losses if ya wanted us tah do that."

"I appreciate the concern, but I cannot," said Matthew.

"When's the funeral?" asked Fox.

"I will wait until the trial ends," said the former hand.

"Why wait?" asked Falco. "Everybody's gettin' pretty antsy for some of that, ya know."

"I would never forgive myself if I let them into the ground before they knew what Link's fate was," said Matthew. "Until Link's judgment is passed, I will not bury them."

"It's not like they have ears, you know," said Fox.

"I know," said Matthew. "Still, it does not feel right to bury them before the trial."

"Right," said Falco. "I take it you're not gonna get sleep until you find out too, right?"

"Until I find out?" asked Matthew as he looked at Falco and got on his knees. "I will not sleep until I get the justice that we deserve! He killed three people, he sent one into a coma, and he disabled another, all without mercy! I hired the best lawyer in the world to help us in our cause, and God help him if the lawyers let him get away with what he did!"

"And what's your idea of justice in this here case?" asked Falco.

"Capital punishment," said Matthew behind barred teeth.

"And anything less than that is not good enough?" asked Fox.

"Exactly," said Matthew.

The fox shuddered at the fact that Matthew was thinking in extreme terms

"Isn't that a bit extreme though?" asked Fox.

"No," said Matthew. "Nothing is extreme as far as justice is concerned!"

"Dude, simmer down!" said Falco. "Thinkin' 'bout revenge never solved problems, ya got it? Chances are, the jury will find him unforgivable. Happy?"

"Sort of," said Matthew. "Now that our conversation is over, would you be so kind as to leave me alone?"

"Well, okay," said Fox. "If you don't come out in a while, though, expect to see us here again."

Matthew nodded as the two humanoid creatures walked out of the office, Falco closing the door behind him.

* * *

Link sat in his cell, smirking.

He had the perfect defense. He might get a life term for killing three others, but with that he knew he could escape and kill Ganondorf in the hospital bed

The Hylian had wanted to kill Ganondorf because he felt he was detracting attention from him, but unfortunately he had not seen the other deaths coming. He knew the other deaths would work against him, but he knew of a way out of his cell that nobody seemed to notice.

Link had also told Samus to comply with what he would say as his motive for killing Ganondorf, which would ensure that he would get out of the death penalty. He never told her what his defense was either, but the bounty hunter had agreed to comply nevertheless.

He did not tell anybody else either, since he did not want any evidence prepared against him. He knew perfectly well that if anybody on the other side knew his supposed motivations they would scramble for evidence with which to prove him wrong. He knew that if he was proven wrong his hopes would be done for.

The Hylian also hoped nobody found the Ziploc bag that contained the crack that he had smoked prior to going out on a rampage; part of his recklessness came from the fact that he was high on cocaine so that once he did fatally wound Ganondorf he would have been dehumanized to the action. He knew this would excuse him from the death penalty, but he also knew that it would depopularize him since nobody liked to associate with crack addicts unless they were fresh out of rehab.

Link also knew that Zelda might be thinking less of him. He took her not testifying at the trial as a good thing, but he could not help but worry if the Hylian princess had lost interest in Link as a result.

No matter the case, Link knew he would be the attention king if he kept on deceiving.

This, he was sure to keep doing.

* * *

Ganondorf looked so peaceful in his hospital bed. His face had long since relaxed and his arms lay next to him as if nothing had happened.

Watching the Gerudo king in the bed comatose with a green hospital garment was enough to reduce Marth to tears any day. He looked as if he was just asleep, and yet the prince knew that the doctors were fighting a fight for his life. They were beginning to win, but to Marth a coma was almost exactly like death. The only difference was that comatose people could wake up.

It broke the prince's heart to the point that he was visibly shaken so long that he stayed that way during the drive home to the mansion that Bowser had given the prince.

Bowser felt bad for the prince; he knew that nothing he could say would comfort the prince. The koopa knew that if Ganondorf never woke up the prince would never be able to be comforted. He had seen how Marth and Ganondorf had gotten close to each other before that night; therefore, he knew that Marth was not taking this very easily.

Still, the king knew that Marth needed company with him, so he decided to speak about other things as he drove all the way back to the mansion.

"Say, Marth," said Bowser. "You're going to the trial tomorrow, right?"

"No," said Marth.

"Why not?" asked the king.

"I do not want to see that man," said Marth. "I can testify, but I do not want to associate with that man."

"Then are you going to watch it occur in the match lounge?" asked Bowser.

"Yes," said Marth. "I am a distance away from him then."

"Well, that's good," said Bowser. "Me? I have to testify. I was one of the people he attacked."

Marth nodded. "Peach and Falco are also staying, right?"

"Yes," responded the king.

"At least I will have company," said Marth. "I cannot help but feel that Link will get away with it, though…"

"Why is that?" asked the king, wanting to perk his head but succumbing to the fact that he had to keep his eyes on the road.

"Think about it for a second," said Marth. "A famous sports star gets tried for the murder of his wife and children, and he is declared not guilty by the jury. A musician gets tried twice for the reported molesting of children, and he is declared not guilty. Think about it! If that was true, then the popular people can get away with whatever they want! Therefore, Link could get away with this!"

"I think that it could happen only if his defense is good enough," said Bowser. "Still, I get your point."

Bowser's left hand went to the compartment that was in between the driver's seat and the passenger seat and took out a Ziploc bag with a white powder in it.

"By the way," said Bowser. "Can you identify this for me?"

Marth took the bag and looked at it.

"I cannot tell simply by looking at it," said Marth. "Was there anything next to it?"

"I saw a bunch of square-shaped papers next to it," said Bowser. "Why?"

Marth stared at the back of Bowser's seat with an appalled expression on his face. He looked first at the bag he was holding, then back at Bowser.

"Where did you find this?" asked the prince.

"I was on cleaning duty the night after Link was taken custody when I found it in there," said Bowser. "I figured it was laundry soap."

"How come you never said anything?" asked Marth. "Why did you fail to tell Matthew?"

"What's the big deal?" asked Bowser. "It's laundry soap, right?"

"Bowser, this might be a bag of cocaine I am holding in my hand," said Marth. "It could not be laundry soap; dryer sheets are kept in packages! Do you have the slightest misgivings as to what this could mean?"

The koopa had just pulled into the mansion's driveway, and he stopped in the middle as Marth finished his question. He then looked at Marth, shock showing uncensored on his face.

* * *

"So Link was a crack addict is what you are trying to tell us?"

"I am afraid so."

"Jeyesus! Whah woyould heh do sowmtheyin lahke thayat?"

"Maybe he used it to dehumanize him for killing the others?"

"Explains why that wimp would storm the place without feeling bad fo' anybody."

The doctor had examined the white powder that Marth had given him close to an hour ago. After performing chemical tests on it, he concluded that the powder was a ground-up form of cocaine. Since Mario would obviously have taken any cocaine he had with him, the only other possibility was that Link was addicted to cocaine.

He had then explained his findings to all of the other people that were in the mansion. They sat in the match lounge, eyes staring at the doctor.

"Wait," said Zelda. "Matthew talked about Link being a crack addict. What is he trying to imply?"

"Simple," said Ness as he stood up and faced the princess. "People that take cocaine smell like onions. Link smelled like onions since a few days before the Summer Festival. Got my point?"

"Now, now, Ness, there's no need to get smart here," said Bowser Jr.

"And what do you know of being smart, spike boy?" retorted Ness. "Last I knew you were being smart to me, you oversized pet!"

"Hey!" exclaimed Bowser Jr. "That's racist!"

"You guys!" said Young Link. "Stop fighting! Disunity at a time like this isn't good for any of us."

"Seriously," muttered Fox.

The Hylian princess shook her head at the conversation, and then she sighed as she sank back against the wall.

"Why did he do it?" asked Zelda. "His life was fine, his popularity was fine, and everything else was fine until that cursed night!"

"Mahbeh heh goyot sow fuyull o' himseyelf thayat heh thowt thayat Ganondowf wayas mow powpular thayan him?" asked Falcon.

"I don't know," said Bowser. "Maybe that's a reason why he tried to kill Ganondorf?"

"It does not fit his character, though," said Nana. "Perhaps the crack made him think that?"

"I would not know," said Zelda. "Two days before that cursed night, Link told me how I was changing."

"Odd," said Bowser as he brought his hand to his chin. "I haven't seen change in you."

"Neither have I," said Peach. "Perhaps he was the one changing?"

"Nobody would have noticed, though," said Matthew. "Why did he keep silent in the first place?"

"Beats me," said Falco. "All we know now is that we have extra evidence for the trial!"

All heads turned to the normally rash bird as he walked and jumped on the couch's backrest.

"Think about it," said Falco. "All those joints he smoked might not have gotten inta his system completely. Marth told all of us that Link called himself immortal or some other complicated shit like that after Ganondorf fell into his coma."

"Yes, but that was that one instance," said Peach.

"He was saying it under his breath when I came to visit him today, though," said Samus. "The high must have worn off at least a week ago."

"Exactly my point," said Falco. "If that's true, then it means that Link had this planned from the start. He was actively doing the plan while high on crack, but he must not have thought about it on one."

"Ah!" said Bowser. "I get it! So the crack was just to keep him from feeling things!"

"That's a great prosecution statement!" said Matthew. "I guess now we have incriminating evidence to counter anything he might say."

"Of course," said everybody cheerfully.

"Therefore, I can dismiss this meeting," said the doctor. "Good night!"

Everybody wandered to their dorms in the night.


	25. Chapter 25: The Trial

Hello, all!

Here at the festival, the roster people were a little incompetent; apparently, somebody screwed te seatings completely and they had to be completely redone. Now, instead of doing the Prokofiev _Romeo and Juliet_ I have to do _Petrushka_. Oh well. I sightread it today, and it's a pretty fun read. Now let's hope that we get the hang of the meter changes.

And aside from the big revealer of Link's actions with Samus, today is also the day that the last Harry Potter book comes out. I'm sick of the stuff that people say that Harry's going to die simply because it's the last book in the series. You can't assume death because it's the last book of a series, people. You'd do well to learn that.

I've blabbed enough. Here's the next chapter.

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 25: The Trial

"All rise! The honorable Judge Antonio presiding."

A body of people thronged in a section of a large room stood as a man wearing a black robe with aged features on his face entered and sat on an elevated platform.

"You may sit," he added upon sitting. A unanimous dropping of buttocks onto chairs sounded in the room.

"Now, let the trial of the Super Smash Brothers, represented by Phoenix Wright, against Link, represented by Miles Edgeworth, begin."

Nana looked nervously at the two sides. On the prosecutor's side of the courtroom, a man with brown hair all combed towards the back wall and an ocean-colored suit sat quietly. On the defendant's side, Link sat next to his own attorney, who had white hair and an amethyst suit.

The young Ice Climber moved closer to Bowser Jr, who happened to be sitting next to her. The witness stand was empty, but they knew it was soon to be filled by the prosecution. Nana had memorized the order from what Bowser told her; he, the doctor, and Matthew were all witnesses for the prosecution. She had also heard that Samus and Link were both witnesses for the defense, and the fact that Samus sat on the prosecutor's side of the room attested to this very well.

"Will the prosecution begin with their opening statement?" asked the judge.

"Yes, your honor," said Phoenix, promptly standing up and walking in front of the jury. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, you see before you many people who wish that justice be bestowed upon the man in the defendant's part of the courtroom. These people have all lost someone dear to them because of what this man did and would want nothing more than to have Link dealt with according to the law. Link has much evidence against him, and he held a grudge against the intended victim that was left unattended and allowed to spiral into the massacre that was the night of July 10th. I hope you will side with me, for justice and for the happiness of the witnesses who will testify today. I thank you, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, for your time."

Phoenix walked back to the prosecutor's part of the courtroom.

"Will the defense begin with their opening statement?" asked the judge.

"Yes, your honor," said Miles, doing the exact same thing Phoenix did when he made the opening statement. "Many people are misunderstood; their actions are deemed evil by society when sometimes their intentions are good. My client may have done all of the things he did on the night of July 10th, but the fact that he may have had his reasons comes to my mind. Ganondorf Dragmire was an evil man, that is for sure; perhaps he did something that Link considered unjust and the deaths were simply those caught in the crossfire of Link's justice. Gentlemen of the jury, I plead you to consider this as the trial progresses. I thank you for your time."

Miles walked back to the defendant's side of the courtroom.

"Will the prosecution call their first witness?" asked the judge.

"Yes, your honor," said Phoenix. "The prosecution calls Bowser to the stand."

A small murmur came around as the king of the koopas stood up and walked to the witness stand. The bailiff came to him as he sat down and motioned his right hand to lay on the Bible he carried.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you the gods you believe in?" asked the bailiff.

"I do," said Bowser. Phoenix walked over to the king.

"Can you tell us of what happened to you during the night of July 10th?" asked the attorney.

"I can," said Bowser. "I was woken up by a yell some time after midnight, and was about to go back to sleep when a friend knocked telling me that Link was trying to kill Ganondorf. I ran down the stairs in hope of distracting him, and when I did, he attacked me so that he could get rid of me. Then, Popo Climber intervened and was killed; shortly after, Peach Toadstool lost her arm because of him. And then the doctor came in and Link ran away."

"Right," said Phoenix. "Were any derogatory remarks said about the intended victim?"

"Ganondorf was referred to as a piece of dog shit," said Bowser. A light gasp followed from a few people in the crowd.

"This was said by Link, correct?" asked Phoenix.

"Yes," said Bowser. "I wouldn't say it. Ganondorf is my friend."

"I recently heard from some officials at the forensics office that Link had what looked to be cocaine in his system," said Phoenix. "Can you explain this for us?"

"I found a Ziploc bag containing the stuff on his bed," said Bowser.

Link's eyes widened a little as the crowd let out a collective gasp, afterwards going into a somewhat loud discussion.

A set of gavel bangs resounded in the courtroom shortly after.

"Order in the court!" shouted the judge.

The discussion died down.

"Do you think that Link murdered three people because he was high on cocaine?" asked Phoenix.

"No," said Bowser. "Link and Ganondorf were always rivals; it's a wonder we let it get to this point."

"No more questions," said Phoenix as he took his seat.

"Thank you," said the judge. "Will the defense now cross-examine the witness?"

"Yes, your honor," said Miles as he stood up and walked to the witness stand.

"If you found a pouch of cocaine on his bed, why did you fail to report it to the authorities?" asked Miles.

"I originally thought it was laundry soap," said Bowser. "A friend told me that it might be cocaine, and the mansion's doctor verified this last night."

"Do you seriously think that Link would think of such a simple plan of attack and run after Ganondorf on a high?" asked Miles.

"Again, the two were bitter rivals," said Bowser. "Link would not have to think about trying to kill his enemy intentionally while high on crack anyway since that's true. It would explain why he would feel no regret for the others, however."

"And why would he kill the others?" asked Miles.

"They got in his way," said Bowser. "Before he attacked me, he told me that after he got rid of me he would go after Ganondorf."

"No more questions," said Miles as he returned to his seat.

"Will the prosecution call their next witness?" asked the judge.

"Yes, your honor" said Phoenix. "The prosecution calls Dr. Mario to the stand."

The doctor stood up and walked to the witness stand.

* * *

Falco was busy making sandwiches in the kitchen. He had sat through the most important testimony of the defense, and now he felt he had no reason to watch the witnesses for the prosecution go through their thing. 

Also, the three of them were beginning to get hungry; none of them had eaten breakfast, after all. Since Marth had no intention of leaving the match lounge and Peach could not make sandwiches because of the fact that she had no right hand, Falco ended up going to the kitchen to make them.

He wondered why Matthew told the chefs to take the day off. He knew that everybody would go out to lunch, but he had also neglected the smashers who were staying at the mansion. Falco shook his head, figuring some people could never have a head that could be penetrated by simple psychology.

Falco put the finishing touch to the club sandwich Marth had asked for, and then with the take-out containers that were stored in the kitchen he went across the hall to Marth and Peach. Both were watching the screen; Marth sat there at the edge of the couch intently listening to the trial while Peach sat at the table, handless arm hanging over the backrest as she looked at the trial indifferently.

"Did I miss anythin' from the defense?" asked Falco.

"No," said Peach. "They're in the middle of Matthew's testimony."

"Right," said Falco as he handed the sandwich containers to the people who had asked for the sandwiches. They all opened the containers and began to eat.

On screen, Matthew stood at the witness stand, with his attorney asking him questions.

"And he died in your arms, yes?" asked the onscreen lawyer.

"Yes," said Matthew. "I heard the gunshots again, and then I called the police afterwards."

"No more questions," said the lawyer. He sat down as the other attorney walked to Matthew.

"So, Luigi sacrificed himself to save you," said the defense attorney.

"Yes," said Matthew. "There is no denying that."

"Is it also true that his brother Mario had left the mansion prior to this incident?" asked the defense attorney.

"Oh, Jesus," said Falco. "Did he have tah bring that up?"

"Are you saying that Luigi purposely did it because he did not want to live anymore?" asked Matthew.

"I figured he would say that," said Peach. "It's a sensitive subject, really."

"I am not saying that," said the defense attorney. "Now answer the question."

"Yes," said Matthew.

"Is it also true that Mario had made Luigi feel terrible psychologically the day he left?" asked the defense attorney.

"Yes," said Matthew.

"No more questions," said the attorney as he went to take his seat.

"Has the prosecution run out of witnesses?" asked the judge once Matthew was seated.

"Yes, your honor," said the prosecutor.

"Will the defense now call their first witness?" asked the judge, turning to the side of the courtroom with the defendant.

"Yes, your honor," said the defense attorney. "The defense calls Link to the stand."

The fallen hero stood and walked to the witness stand.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you the gods you believe in?" asked the bailiff.

"I do," said Link.

"As if people haven't said it enough times," said Falco. "That kind o' talk annoys me tah no end."

The defense attorney walked forward.

"The other witnesses say that you and Ganondorf were in a rivalry," said the attorney. "Do you deny this?"

"No," said Link.

"Was the attempted murder of Ganondorf part of this rivalry?"

"No," said Link. "It is an impeachment of justice that drove me to this."

"What?" asked Marth. "Ganondorf tried to change; he would never do that now, not after he has progressed so far!"

Falco shrugged and continued watching the trial.

"Can you tell us of what happened if that is true?" asked the defense attorney.

"It is quite simple, actually," said Link. "During the daylight hours of July 10th, we were all shocked about Mario's disappearance. Samus came to me at the match lounge and pulled me aside to tell me something."

"And what did Samus say to you then?" asked the defense attorney.

"That Ganondorf had raped her, simply put," said Link.

A general gasp of shock went throughout the courtroom and the match lounge.

"What?" asked Marth loudly.

"Is something the matter?" asked Peach.

"He is lying, damn it!" yelled Marth, jumping from the couch, not caring that the sandwich container fell to the floor along with the contents of the other half of the sandwich he had been eating when Link said the fatal words.

"This is not true!" shouted Marth. "Ganondorf would never resort to rape!"

"Marth, settle down!" said Peach as she settled her sandwich in the container and stood up. "You never know about that."

"You never know?" asked Marth. "So you are saying that he would murder his own tribe then?"

"Wha?" asked Falco, jumping off of his seat still holding the sandwich. "She never said that! What are ya talkin' 'bout?"

"You know damn well what I am talking about!" shouted Marth, face glowing in a red light.

"No, Marth," said Peach. "If Ganondorf could do things like that, then he—"

"He would _never_ do such things, understand?" yelled Marth at the top of his lungs, effectively silencing the two other occupants of the room. "I know Ganondorf better than either of you ever will! He would kill, but he would do it only out of mercy! He would never do anything you two would think he would!"

"But Marth, ya—" began Falco.

"Shut up!" yelled Marth, throwing the unfinished sandwich he held in his hand at the avian. "You will never understand! Since you will never understand, why are you even talking right now?"

Silence followed as Link's testimony continued. They had not started the cross examination.

"I thought so," said Marth dangerously beneath his breath. "Now, if you two would not mind leaving me in my room so I can avoid the foulness of that man's words, I will do that."

The enraged Altean walked out of the room, leaving Peach and Falco to wonder what they had said to get the prince so outraged.

* * *

Marth slammed the door when he entered his room. 

Those fools would never understand Ganondorf the way Marth understood the king. Again, ignorance seemed to get in the way of Ganondorf's development, but he could not stand to see the comments being made while the king was able to hear them.

Marth was loyal to the Gerudo king; ever since he had told the king about his past he felt a great debt to him. The two times he had to repay him had both gone against how he would have imagined it, but the third time Marth would be sure not to let the king down.

The prince went to the bookcase and grabbed a book out of the case. He then proceeded to tear all of the pages out of his book.

His anger could have been spent on Falco, but Marth did not want to risk being sent out of the mansion; thus, he turned to the books on his bookcase for destruction purposes. Marth was angry that the testimony meant that it would be Ganondorf who would face punishment upon waking up, and he knew nobody else understood it. However, for Falco to have said something was even worse for the prince. This only rubbed in the fact more; and Marth did not want to face it.

Once he was done tearing the pages of the book, he proceeded to grab another book. As he was about to tear the pages of this one, a light thud came from the bookcase.

Marth looked up, eyes still etched in anger.

He found a digital camcorder on the shelf that he had just pulled the book from. It had fallen on its side from the lack of support of the green book.

The prince's expression took on an infinitely more curious tone after seeing the camcorder. He dropped the book he was holding and picked up the camcorder.

"Since when was this here?" asked Marth.

He opened the camcorder to find it recording, He hit the stop button.

The prince then hit reverse to figure out when the camcorder had been put in his room. After waiting a few minutes, he pressed play.

He saw himself enter his room and go to bed.

The prince shook his head and reversed some more. After hitting the play button, he found a slightly different clip of him doing the exact same action. He frowned and reversed.

When he hit play the third time, he was greeted by something very strange.

He saw Link and Samus walk into his room.

"They caught this on tape?" asked Marth.

Link then sat on the bed, removing Samus' helmet, revealing long blonde hair.

"What in the world?" asked Marth.

"Samus, you truly do look beautiful," said Link.

"Really?" asked Samus.

"Yes," said Link. "I have a way of killing Ganondorf, and it will require some cooperation from you. Do what I tell you and we can get away together, my love."

Marth nearly froze at this sentence.

He hit the fast forward button, hitting play after a few seconds to reveal a white mass with two main components on the bed. Distinctly feminine moans were heard as a blonde man hovered above.

After this, Marth had seen enough. He cued the video to where he had seen Samus and Link walk into the room and ran out of the dorm, flying down the stairs and dashing to the match lounge.

"Is the trial still commencing?" asked Marth upon entering the lounge.

"Link's in the middle of his cross-examination, Marth," said Peach. Falco looked at Marth as he entered. "Listen, we're sorry for offending you with what we said. We would like to make it up to you. How do you think we can do that?"

"You can take me to the courthouse now," said Marth.

"Why would we do that, man?" asked Falco, standing up. "We're not—"

"I have evidence that will prove Link a liar," said Marth. "Now if you really want to help me, show me to where the Arwing is and get me there as quickly as possible."

Falco knew that such evidence was real big news for Marth and to the prosecution, so he wasted no time in running out of the match lounge, Marth and Peach following in hot pursuit as Marth held the video camera in his hand.

* * *

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you the gods you believe in?" asked the bailiff. 

"I do," said Samus as she sat in the witness' stand. The bailiff walked away as Miles Edgeworth walked forward.

Samus was not wearing her power suit; rather, a business suit replaced it that allowed the spectators to see her face. The suit was very conservative in taste, such that no cleavage showed.

"Link said in his testimony that you told him you were raped by Ganondorf," said Miles. "Is this true?"

"Yes," said Samus.

A smaller gasp rang in the courtroom, but this time the clamor that had followed Link's utterance of the word rape was nonexistent. It took a minute to get the crowd to settle down then, but for Miles it was a good thing; it was smooth sailing to get his client acquitted no matter what happened. The cross-examination proved some points, but they would be worth nothing if Samus talked about her rape.

"Did he show any signs of aggression towards you at all?" asked Miles.

"He spoke to me in a haughty voice a few times," said Samus. "One time was before the first match that I had with him."

"I know this will be hard on you, but can you tell us how it happened?" asked Miles.

"Of course," said Samus. "I was walking along… Then, he showed up and pulled me into a room. I fought, but he managed to get the power suit off. Then, he dragged me to a bed and, well, you know the rest. He had raped me in a friend's room, on top if it…"

"Right," said Miles. "Did he use a condom, which could potentially eliminate any threats to your life and prevent an unwanted pregnancy?"

"Why would he?" asked Samus. "It would kill the whole point of rape."

"No more questions," said Miles as he returned to his seat and Phoenix stood up.

"So it happened in a friend's room," said Phoenix.

"Yes," said Samus.

"Are you sure it was Ganondorf then?" asked Phoenix. "It could very well be that somebody else was in there that you could not see."

"The lights were on," said Samus. "You can't confuse people when the lights are on."

"And if so, who would he borrow the room from?" asked Phoenix. "Don't you have to risk a person walking in on you?"

"He must have thrown the occupant out then," said Samus. "He also locked the door behind him when he pulled me in."

"Did he leave any marks on you?" asked Phoenix.

"On my breasts," said Samus. "You can see hand-shaped bruises on my breasts."

"Would you mind showing us those marks?" asked Phoenix.

"Objection!" yelled Miles as he stood up. "The observers of this trial might get offended if Ms. Aran exposes herself in front of them."

"Sustained," said the judge. Miles sat back in his seat.

"Are you sure nobody else raped you then?" asked Phoenix.

"Yes," said Samus.

"No more questions," said Phoenix as he sat down.

"Has the defense run out of witnesses?" asked the judge.

"Yes, your honor," said Miles.

"Is there any evidence the prosecution may want to present?" asked the judge.

"No, your—" began Phoenix before the door opened.

"Yes, your honor," said a man as he entered. His indigo eyes told something that he needed to say.

A small murmur went in the audience as he entered.

* * *

Bowser was mildly shocked to see Marth suddenly walk into the court. 

"What the hell is he doing here?" he asked under his breath.

"And you are relevant to this case, how?" asked the judge. "You barge into a formal court proceeding and then claim you have evidence! Escort this man out of here imm—!"

"But your honor, you must take us into consider—!" said Marth.

"People that barge into a formal court proceeding are trespassing," responded the judge. "You should not have come in here in the—!"

"It's because he does have evidence, your honor," said the man's humanoid avian companion as he stepped forward after closing the door behind him. Bowser immediately recognized him as Falco. "Please, your honor. He can't abandon a friend in need, and he has evidence that can prove the defense wrong. Let him talk what he wants tah talk 'bout and see what he says."

The judge was silent for a few minutes.

"Bring him forward," said the judge.

Bowser stared as Marth was allowed close to the witness stand. Before entering, Falco shot him a glance that seemed to say 'ya owe me one, man'.

"And this piece of evidence is…?" asked the judge.

"I found a video camera in my room a few minutes ago, your honor," said Marth as he unveiled the said article.

"What does a video camera have to do with this trial?" asked the judge.

"It has a tape of a certain sex act on it, though," said Marth. "It was hidden in a bookshelf, and it seemed to be positioned to track something. Does anybody have a projector or anything of the sort?"

"I do not believe so," said the judge. "It would take too long to get one here anyway."

"Well, some of the audio can be revealing enough," said Marth as he walked to the bailiff. "Will you please give this to the judge?"

"Yes," said the bailiff, taking the camera and walking to the judge, who then took it and pressed the play button.

Footsteps sounded from the slightly condensed quality of the camcorder. Then, a plopping of a bed and the deep exhalation of a power suit helmet being removed came from the camcorder as well.

"Samus, you truly do look beautiful," said Link from the camcorder.

The defendant almost froze, but he knew that he had to keep his composure if he wanted to win the case.

"Really?" asked Samus, also from the camcorder.

"Yes," said Link, also from the camcorder. "I have a way of killing Ganondorf, and it will require some cooperation from you. Do what I tell you and we can get away together, my love."

Marth had heard that part, so he expected not to know what came next. However, he resolved to keep his composure.

"And what do you want me to do?" asked Samus' condensed voice from the camcorder.

Nothing much was said, but a closing of distance between bodies was heard.

Link calmly stood up from his seat.

"May I see the tape, your honor?" asked Link.

"You may," said the judge as he handed the camcorder to the bailiff. He then went for Link, handing him the camcorder and standing next to him as he watched.

The faux hero watched himself undress Samus from a singular viewpoint from a supposed bookshelf. He also watched the bounty hunter undress him with her lips on his.

"This…" said Link, stuttering a little. "This is preposterous! Where did you get this?"

"Again, it was on a bookshelf in my room," said Marth. "I haven't the slightest idea how it got there."

"This was edited," said Link softly. "This was edited!"

He shouted his last sentence.

"Link, settle down," said Miles. "We—"

"I would never willingly sleep with that bitch," said Link. "I love Zelda!"

A small gasp of shock followed after Link said the swear word as Samus' face became flushed of all of the color it had originally had.

"Link, I order you to settle down," said the judge. "This is a courtroom!"

"But your honor, this is not right!" said Link loudly. "I would never do this! This must be Zelda in a power suit!"

"Then why would her hair be done exactly like Samus' hair?" asked Marth.

"Shut up!" shouted Link. "This is not right! This isn't me! It has to be—!"

At this point, Samus abruptly stood up and pointed a finger at Link.

"You said you loved me!" shouted Samus as she did this.

Link stopped speaking as he and the rest of the courtroom turned to face Samus.

"You told me that Zelda was a bitch!" shouted Samus at the top of her lungs. "You told me that we would run far away once you had broken out of jail! You told me Ganondorf was a hindrance for you to me! And now, you sit here calling me a bitch! You said you loved me! You said you loved me!"

"Settle down, Samus," said Miles.

Samus sat back in her chair, tears beginning to appear on her face.

"Is this true?" asked Phoenix, directed to Link.

The faux hero looked at Samus, then at Phoenix. He then sat down and looked at the floor with a depressed aura surrounding him.

"Yes," said Link. "I told it to her so that she would keep quiet that she had sex with me consensually so I could frame Ganondorf if you checked…"

* * *

Peach readied a small little victory snack for Marth, humming a cheerful tune as she did. 

After Link had admitted to his lie, the rest of the trial was set for the victory of the prosecution. Of course, there was nothing Link could do since it was too late for him to plead guilty, so everybody knew that it was only a matter of time before Link would have his sentence read. Peach had speculated that he would be set for death, but she knew that anything could happen.

The jury was deliberating, and she had put the TV volume on maximum so she would know when to stop making noise. Fixing snacks with only one hand was really very difficult, and she was constantly dropping things on the floor every other second as a result. Peach always shook her head, playfully rolling her eyes at the fact that she would have to get used to it.

After what Bowser told her on that day, she felt as if nothing could tell Peach that she had a curse; rather, she looked at her arm as a blessing. Because she had lost her arm, she had somebody she could trust with her life. The fact that such a friendship would bring peace between two enemy nations was something very far from her mind at the moment.

The princess really could get used to such a life with such a friend.

As of then, the princess had been preparing Marth's favorite salad; this was a garden salad with bacon bits thrown into the mix. She had managed to chop the bacon bits, and after quite a difficult time of finding something to hold the salad bowl she managed to get the bacon bits into the salad bowl.

She was about to refrigerate the finished salad when she heard the TV buzz to life.

"All rise!"

Peach placed the garden salad in the refrigerator and ran to the match lounge to find the spectators sit. She had arrived just in time to see Link's sentence be read.

"Has the jury reached a verdict?" asked the judge as everybody sat back down.

"We have, your honor," said a young man who looked to be in his early twenties. "The jury finds Link… guilty… of three counts of first degree murder against Ms. Cornelia Hand and two members of the Super Smash Brothers. He has also been found guilty of one count of possession and use of cocaine and one count of lying under oath."

No noise was made, for many people expected this to be the verdict. Link let his head fall on his shoulders. By then, he knew he had lost.

"Link," said the judge, turning to the hero. "For being found guilty, your sentence is death, by the electric chair."

He brought the gavel down on the piece of wood that lay on the stand.

"Court adjourned!"


	26. Chapter 26: From the New World

Hello, children. What's up?

_Petrushka_ is coming along nicely, though not nicely enough for Friday night. Unfortunately, that's when my festival ends. I stay another day, but that's another story. Overall, I'm really gonna miss this place; basically put, I had the time of my life. I loved the repertory, I loved the other people, but most of all I loved the overall musical integrity of everybody here. If I get into the festival next year, I will definitely go again; it takes a huge chunk of summer, but it takes a huge chunk to devote it to stuff that I really want to do when I graduate from college.

So with this, I'm afraid the EMF chapters of this story are beginning to close. If chapter 27 gets here before Sunday (which I doubt), then that will be the last chapter; otherwise, I say farewell to the festival with this chapter.

Anyways, that's all from me.

Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 26: From the New World

Mario hummed quietly to himself as he walked to the local Chinese restaurant to get some take-out service for himself and four other people.

It had been two weeks since he ran to Die Engelein under the assumed identity of 'Massimo'. He had seen some odd activities around there, but he knew he would have to get used to it since he was not used to the city life.

However, his new friends were making the transition easy; all of them knew the street lingo, and they all knew plenty of people there. Pit was his best friend from Die Engelein, as the two lived right next door to each other. Some parts of his relationship with Wario were still a little rocky, but otherwise they went well for the most part. Meta, his land lord, was also a very nice fellow, and Pit's girlfriend Palutena was one of the most unique women the Italian had ever met in his life.

The plumber felt he could get used to such a life; he liked the city for the fact that it felt alive, and he also felt that nobody was going to do anything to him.

However, he felt as if he had made a wrong choice by coming here; since he had moved to Die Engelein, he felt that a part of himself was incomplete. He felt as if he should have at least done something back in the mansion before he left.

Mario always justified it by saying that he was getting away from what he feared most, so he usually shrugged the thoughts away.

He wondered how Peach was back in the mansion. Mario was dying to write to her for the longest time, but he knew that he would probably reveal himself to his brothers. He knew that his identity was a delicate thing to hold on to, so he did everything in his power to keep himself from being exposed as Mario Mario.

He hummed the tune to himself as he walked into the Chinese restaurant because everybody he knew was gathering at Meta's apartment for dinner. They had decided this since that night happened to be the Dragon Festival, they would celebrate at Meta's with Chinese food. Nobody in the group was actually Chinese, but Meta was one to celebrate every holiday in the world no matter what the nationality in question was.

Mario walked up to the counter to order.

* * *

Meta sat on a couch flipping through channels on a television with Wario by his side as Palutena was preparing the table. Pit stared outside of the window, waiting for Massimo to appear. 

It had been a quiet scene since Massimo left to get the Chinese take-out orders. The others were waiting very patiently, so the scene was not very tense at all. Pit liked to look out of windows during this, so he was not very tense at all. In fact, all of them were doing something that lowered the level of tension in their systems; after all, it was a medically proven fact that stress was not healthy for anybody.

Pit watched as the cars zoomed by below. His father had leapt into the cars driving down below from the top of a tourist building back home. The incident scared Pit once it had happened, and afterwards Pit knew that he did not want to wind up the way his father did. He knew for a fact that he had to avoid a depressing life to keep himself from having to do what his father did; thus, he kept a large circle of friends with him that he knew he could count on during times of struggle.

At this moment in time, Palutena had finished arranging plates on the table. She walked up to Pit.

"Are you staring at the cars again?" asked the young Hispanic woman.

"Yes," said Pit. "It's habit, I guess."

"I worry about that," said Palutena. "Your father jumped to his death."

"I know," said Pit. "I also know what I have to do to be able to avoid having to jump. We've talked about it a lot."

"I know," said Palutena. "Still, it never hurt anybody to worry about the health of their love."

"True," said Pit. "You know, I always wondered what secrets my father hid from me; the police told me nothing of his troubles…"

"You only know that they were quite depressing," said Palutena.

"Exactly," said Pit as he looked at Palutena. "I hope that one day somebody will have the answers I'm looking for…"

"I sure hope you do find the answers," said Palutena.

"Hey, would you two mind not talking about depressing subjects?" asked Meta from the TV. "It is the Chinese New Year, you know!"

This startled Pit and Palutena at the same time; neither of them remembered that Pit's landlord had sensitive hearing. Along with the fact that they had said much of the conversation at a soft dynamic, anybody would be surprised.

"Sorry!" said Pit.

At this moment, the doorbell rang.

"I got-a the take-out!" shouted Massimo's voice from the doorway.

"Yay!" said Wario. "I got it, man!"

The fat man walked to the door and opened it.

* * *

The group sat around the TV, watching a boat race that was taking place midday in China. Massimo and Pit were betting on one boat while Palutena and Wario had bet on another boat, with the boat that Pit and Massimo had bet on racing ahead of its competitor. 

Dragon Boat races never got boring during such gatherings at Meta's apartment; the landlord had lived long enough to know this. He had done this with many of the occupants of his apartment before, and they were always fun. They would always shout out the name of the competitors they were rooting for, and then they would always shout out in playful dismay once they had lost the race. They usually placed bets on pieces of orange chicken, which Meta left on a plate on the TV; whoever won a race would win two pieces of orange chicken.

The dinner had been wonderful; he always ordered from the same Chinese restaurant in town, and they always kept up a great meal for people hungry for Chinese food. This was good for everybody, as they always enjoyed a great meal at his apartment; it was part of Meta's job description to be hospitable, and he lived up to it because of that and the fact that it was usually fun to do so.

Thus, the scene was laid out, with Pit and Massimo cheering their boat on as it neared the finish line faster than Palutena and Wario's boat.

Finally, Pit and Massimo's boat crossed the finish line, and they jumped up and grabbed two pieces of orange chicken from the plate. Palutena and Wario were playfully dismayed, sighing with drooping figures. After the other three people in the room laughed, they perked back up.

"Figures," said Pit. "I thought that that captain had something going."

"So did I," said Massimo. "So who's up-a next?"

"I don't know," said Wario. "I bet it will be an interesting race, though…"

"I wonder how you got the channels from China anyways…" said Palutena.

"I have a powerful satellite network," said Meta. "I can get channels from all over the world."

"Cool!" said Massimo. "Do you know where I can find—?"

The Italian's question was cut off as a cellular phone ring tone sounded above the Mandarin being uttered from the TV. The oboist reached into his pocket and answered the phone.

"Hello?" he asked. "Oh, hi Jeremy! What's up?"

Massimo's face put on a curious expression as he noticed this.

"No, no, I'm just at a small party at Meta's," continued Wario. "Yeah. Listen, I'll call you back afterwards, okay? Good. Love you too. Bye!"

Massimo's curiosity was piqued more by the fact that Wario had referred to this 'Jeremy' as a lover. But Jeremy was a boy's name.

"What was-a that about?" asked Massimo.

"Oh, that was my boyfriend Jeremy," said Wario.

"Hm?" asked Massimo. "But I thought you liked to check out women…"

"You didn't know?" asked Pit. "Wario's bisexual."

Massimo looked shocked to hear this.

"Really now?" asked Massimo.

"I am sure he must have told you by now," said Palutena.

Massimo looked at Wario.

Then, without warning, the Italian jumped at the fat man, pinned him to the floor, and grabbed a glass of water and struck Wario in the face with it.

"What in—?" yelled Meta as he looked behind the couch.

"Massimo, stop it!" yelled Pit as he grabbed the Italian and carried him away from Wario.

"Why do you-a people see me as a target?" asked Massimo.

"But Massimo, he has a boyfriend already," said Palutena.

"Yeah, a boyfriend for one-a day!" shouted the Italian.

"We've been together for ten months!" shouted Wario. "Shut your face and live with it."

"Screw-a that!" shouted Massimo as he broke free from Pit's hold. He went to go punch Wario, but Pit and Palutena grabbed him. The Italian made them lose their grip on him, and he successfully punched Wario in the face. He was about to jump on Wario.

"Massimo, that is enough!" said Meta, standing on the couch and effectively surprising Massimo such that he turned to look at the landlord. "You will either behave in a civil manner in my apartment or you can leave this apartment for the rest of the night. If you take a fight to my apartment, may whatever gods you believe in help you from getting evicted!"

This snapped Massimo out of his trance. However, he turned to Meta and pointed his finger threateningly.

"Well, I don't-a see how you could defend these-a stupid, do-whatever-a-the-hell-I-want bitches who want men!" said Massimo. "One of these-a days, you will pay!"

The Italian stomped out of the apartment, furious at everybody. He slammed the door as he exited.

There was a long silence, terminated only by the sounds of rowing from the TV.

After a while, Pit finally said something.

"What a way to ruin such an event," said Pit.

"Seriously," said Wario, rubbing his cut cheeks. "Anybody got Band-aids?"

"Here," said Palutena. "I can help you with that."

With this, the young woman took Wario's hand and entered the kitchen. Meta shook his head.

"How stupid," said the landlord. He stepped off of the couch and walked to the door. "I better go talk to him. I need information."

"Of course," said Pit. "Do you want me to come as well, or no?"

"No," said Meta. "I should do this alone…"

"Right," said Pit. "Good luck fishing out information!"

Meta nodded and exited the apartment.

* * *

Mario threw his shirt at the wall, angry at the world. No matter where he went, it felt as if the plumber never really got away from homosexuals. They seemed to be everywhere he went. His suitcase was open a crack as it lay on the coffee table, waiting for Mario to get something out of it to throw at the wall. 

The plumber sat on his bed, wondering if it was a good idea to come to Die Engelein in the first place. Maybe he had chosen the wrong place to move to. Maybe he had left at a bad time.

No matter what, though, Mario felt that getting away from them at this point was too much, and until he knew of a place where homosexuals did not exist he would stay put.

At this, a set of knuckles rapped on the door.

"May I come in?" asked Meta's voice from the hall.

"It's-a open," said Mario. The landlord walked in, closing the door behind him as he did.

"Massimo, why?" asked Meta. "Why did you—?"

"How many of-a them are there?" asked Mario, looking Meta in the eyes. "How many?"

"Approximately one sixth of the world is made of homosexuals," said Meta. "Why do you ask?"

"I can't-a get away from them!" shouted Mario, grabbing his hair.

"Massimo, settle down!" said Meta as he ran into the room. "It's nothing to tear your hair about! Now settle down and leave your homophobia alone."

"Alone?" asked Mario. "Alone? They will all-a go after-a me next!"

"Massimo, that is not true!" said Meta. "If that was true, Wario would have asked me out by now. And I am not gay!"

"Yes it-a is!" shouted Mario. "You should-a know that!"

"Massimo, stop it!" said Meta. "Homophobia is not good for anybody! Gay men don't lust after straight guys unless they have no lives, so shut up and—!"

"No, you shut up-a your face!" shouted Mario.

His right hand curled into a fist and flew in front of his face as the left hand went behind him.

Mario's left hand knocked the suitcase off of the coffee table and right at Meta's feet. It had flown open upon impact, revealing a small little cap of a crimson complexion.

Meta's head perked to the side in curiosity as he stooped down to pick it up. It had a little red M in the middle of a white circle. The landlord thought he recognized it, but he could not place what he knew it from.

"What is this?" asked Meta.

"That… is-a nothing," said Mario. "Why do you-a say that?"

"Where did you get this?" asked the landlord, this time with more conviction.

"It was-a souvenir from-a Smash Island," said Mario, hoping the lie would side track him.

However, Meta suddenly remembered where he recognized the M from.

It was the M on Mario Mario's cap.

Upon realizing this, Meta threw the cap aside and began searching the suitcase.

"Meta!" shouted Mario. "What-a the hell are you doing? You can't-a look through anybody's stuff!"

It was too late, though, for Meta picked up a picture from within the depths of Mario's suitcase; this was a picture of him and Peach when they had first arrived at the island for the second tournament three months ago.

"Hmph," said Meta. "I thought so. Now tell me, Mario; why did you run from there?"

Mario sighed and looked down, realizing that there was no use in lying to him anymore.

"What could I have-a done?" asked Mario. "Both Luigi and-a the doctor are gay! I don't-a want them after me!"

"What?" asked Meta. "Who gave you such a stupid idea? They both know better than to lust after a brother!"

"They-a don't when they're-a gay!" shouted Mario.

"Mario, it's stupid!" said Meta. "They would never do that to you. Understand?"

"You don't-a think so, eh? You don't think a man who knows you for an entire lifetime would want to rape you someday? Try having a total-a stranger pull you into an alley and do that to you someday!"

Mario blurted this sentence before he realized that he had just given himself away. He thus promptly gasped and covered his mouth as Meta perked his head to the side.

"Something must have happened then," said Meta. "Rape, I assume?"

"Shut up-a your face!" shouted Mario. "I don't-a want to associate with them! They do things to you when you don't want it!"

"No they do not!' shouted Meta. "You do not understand, do you? Those are not true homosexuals; those are the ones that screw whomever they want simply because they have no idea what real love is! That man that did rape you was stupid; therefore, do not bring yourself down to his level! Understand?"

"But what if it-a happens again?" asked Mario.

"It will not if you are careful!" said Meta. "Now be quiet!"

Mario opened his mouth to speak, clamped it shut, and then opened it again.

"Okay, I-a get your point," said Mario, somewhat defeated at having his mindset torn to pieces by logic that he realized he should have used back when he had first been raped. "But I still-a think that my brothers should go to-a hell for not telling me earlier!"

"Well, maybe if you had not been so afraid of being raped again none of this would happen," said Meta.

"Then what do-a you suggest I do?" asked Mario.

The landlord opened his mouth to speak, but then he got an idea that would get Mario to reconcile with his brothers.

"Write to Luigi," said Meta.

"What?" asked Mario.

"Write to Luigi," repeated Meta. "Tell him that you are sorry for what you did to him and wait for him to respond. You will see."

"But why?" said Mario.

"You have been enlightened," said Meta. "Use this to apologize to him.

"Okay…" said Mario somewhat hesitantly. "Should I use my—?"

"Yes," said Meta. "Use your alias on the envelope but your real name in the letter."

"Right…" said Mario as Meta walked to the door. "You aren't-a going to tell anybody else, are-a you?"

"No," said Meta as he approached the door and turned to see Mario. "I believe in landlord-client confidentiality. Your secret is safe with me."

"Thank-a you," said Mario.

Meta nodded and shut the door behind him.

Mario looked at his coffee table for a brief second before jumping to his knees and sifting through his suitcase to find the pad of paper that he would use to follow up on Meta's advice.

* * *

Peach walked to the mail room. It had been four days since she had last checked Luigi's mailbox, and she felt that she should at least check it to make sure that no more friends thought the plumber was still alive. 

The princess felt responsible for making sure people knew about Luigi's death in a manner that did not seem cold; whenever the post office sent things to the plumber's friends they would send the most insensitive messages along with the letter. Thus, Peach asked Bowser to write letters that she dictated to the people who knew Luigi informing them that the Italian was dead, offering many condolences of equal value to everybody.

Most of all, however, Mario was in the princess' thoughts; the poor man was probably lost somewhere, wondering what to do with his life. Peach prayed for his soul every day, praying that Mario would have the strength to overcome his homophobia and apologize to both of his brothers. She sincerely hoped that Mario was not dead, for she knew that the doctor would slowly shrivel into madness before finally ending his own life.

However, the thought that prevailed in her thoughts the most was the coming funeral for the ones killed by Link. Matthew had finally set the date for the funeral; it was to occur during the course of the next week. She wondered how many people would attend, and she also wondered how much would be put into it. Also at the top was when the procession would be; she had heard from various people that the procession would take place immediately after the funeral, but she had not heard from Matthew whether this was true or not.

Peach arrived at the mailbox and turned the now familiar combination into the lock. The princess had done so much to write letters to Luigi's friends that after a break it still felt exactly the same as it would if a break was not taken.

When she opened the mailbox, she found a solitary envelope in the box, addressed to Luigi with the name 'Massimo' on it.

The name startled Peach a little; she had never known Luigi knew a Massimo in his life. Whatever it was, though, she knew the routine. Of course, she always read the letters first before sending the letters to the original senders along with the note that Luigi had died, so she usually knew something about what that person was referring to.

Since she had no right arm, she usually went to the clerk's table, where the clerk was waiting expectantly. Peach handed him the letter.

"You know what to do," said the princess.

Not another word was said as the clerk opened the envelope for her and handed her the sheet of paper.

She then walked to her room, letter in hand. As soon as she arrived, she sat at the desk, opened the letter, and was quite startled to find the following text:

"**Dear Luigi,**

**Don't pay attention to the fact that you don't know a 'Massimo' or whatever. I'm Mario!**

**Listen, I'm sorry for causing any pain to you and the doctor. I realize that I must have made an error of some sort when I yelled at both of you back at the mansion when I was still there.**

**It is a complicated story, actually; you know when we went to that part of the casino town on our way to a town way back in December of five years ago? Well, I lied about my delay. Some gay guy found me and… well… did stuff with me.**" (Here, Peach had to reread the letter to make sure that she was not seeing things.) "**I have feared such people since then since if that man did it, others would be more than willing to do so as well. I never thought it would extend to both of my brothers indiscriminately.**

**Thus, we wind up with how we are. Listen; I'm really very sorry for what I did.**

**Can you find it in your heart to forgive me?**

**-Mario**

**P.S. When you respond, be sure to send it back to a 'Massimo', will you? That's my alias, and I don't want people finding out about this, and plus, they won't know who you're talking to anyway. Also, please don't tell anybody else I sent this to you; this can be our secret.**"

Peach finished reading the letter, eyes brimming with tears.

Mario had finally contacted his brother. However, the sad part was that Luigi was not there to receive it.

"Oh, what am I going to do?" asked Peach, setting the letter on her desk and putting her hand over her eyes. "The poor man does not know a thing!"

Peach shook her head, the beginnings of a headache beginning to develop over what she should tell Mario.


	27. Chapter 27: Flight

Hello, children.

The EMF chapters are officially over; tomorrow, I head back home, and you won't hear much from me until Wednesday or something like that. Again, I'm gonna miss this place, and it's making my heart heavy just thinking about the fact that I have to leave now.

_Petrushka_ was on last night, and it went really well. I had lots of fun doing it, too. You know the rest.

I don't have much else to say, other than that I'll be home for August in a few days.

Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 27: Flight

For the first time in what felt like ages, Link actually knew what being humble was.

The events that had unfolded at the trial had told the Hylian that he was not immortal; unfortunately, he found this out the hard way.

As Link sat in his cell, he knew that he had been very prideful before he found himself in the slammer; he had not realized it then because of the cocaine, but his old self was disappearing into nothing.

It was in jail waiting to be executed that Link realized that the cocaine had heightened old hatreds into something more; the hatreds had risen to astronomical levels by the time Link rampaged around the mansion. It was sad that Link had not noticed this.

He also realized that he had made his popularity spiral downwards when he read the smasher's popularity polls came at his cell the next day. He had been fine while he was on cocaine, but then the day after he rampaged there was a huge slope downwards, and it was almost at zero after the trial. It had not risen since then, and three days had passed since the sentence had been read. He realized the cocaine must have distorted his views on Ganondorf so that it would seem as if the Gerudo was getting more popular.

The Hylian hated it when he failed to realize something.

He realized that he could have done so many things differently than he did. He realized he should not have been so arrogant as to think that one little roll of cocaine would not get him addicted. He realized he should not have pretended that Ganondorf had raped Samus simply so he could get away with mass murder. He also realized that the attention he received was eventually beginning to overtake him, which led him face-first to the situation he was in.

Link had vowed to change so that he would avoid the situation he was in now; he had come to realize that some attention was better than no attention. He realized that he had to be humble and that while he would have had no attention the love of a few people was enough.

Link prayed for a chance to be forgiven, and he knew how to get it.

Zelda would be visiting that day. Then, Link would ask Zelda to give him a second chance at life. Hopefully, the princess had it in her heart to give the Hylian another chance by paying for the parole. After he had gotten off of parole, he planned on returning to Hyrule and starting over in a simple way of life which he hoped he could live with.

For Link, his last wish would be to be given a chance to start over.

He hoped for an opportunity to change.

* * *

Peach walked around, frantically searching for anybody who would listen to her. 

She was hoping Zelda would listen to her, but unfortunately for the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom the princess of Hyrule was nowhere to be found.

Peach really needed to tell somebody of her dilemma; she knew that she had to keep Mario's location a secret, but when she tried writing with her left hand the letters came out jumbled and nonsensical. This forced her to rely on somebody to write a letter for her, and she wanted somebody she could trust. She trusted Zelda, but she was not found anywhere.

The princess held the letter in her hand and entered the match lounge. There, he found Bowser sitting at the TV, watching an episode of some comedy series. The children were flanked around him.

As the show rambled on, Peach realized that Bowser could also be trusted with the letter.

When she entered, Bowser took immediate notice.

"Hey, Peach," said the king. "What's going—?"

"Quiet!" shouted Ness. "You're disrupting the show!"

"Sorry, sorry!" said Bowser, standing up and walking to Peach.

"Bowser, can we talk outside?" asked Peach.

"Sure," said Bowser. The two then walked out into the hallway.

"So what's up?" asked Bowser.

Peach took the letter and handed it to Bowser.

"Read it," she said.

The king took the letter, eyes scanning the paper. His eyes grew wide.

"What in?" asked Bowser.

"Yes," said Peach. "You won't tell anybody, will you?"

"No," said Bowser. "I would still not feel good about hiding something of relevance. Poor man. He doesn't know anything."

"I know," said Peach. "Anyways, I was wondering if you would help me write a response to him?"

"Sure," said Bowser.

"Thank you," said Peach. "By the way, you haven't seen Zelda here, have you?"

"She went to the slammer," said the king. "She said she has some business to take care of with Link and Roy."

Peach nodded a little.

The princess figured it was about time.

* * *

Zelda sat in a white-washed room with windows on two of the walls, revealing other visiting rooms with various people and convicts in them. She sat as calmly as she could bring herself to on one side of a table. The other side of the table was separated by a layer of bars. 

The princess had come to visit Link to tell him that their relationship was over. The poor princess was livid at the man for having slept with Samus so he could exact revenge on somebody he did not like. She knew she had to get it over with now before he would do anything to her.

It was really very hard on him for her to break up the relationship, but she knew she was doing the right thing. After all, nobody wanted a serial killer for a king, and Zelda knew it would be bad for the relationship for Link to cheat on her.

She had been waiting for ten minutes. She knew the prison system was disorganized, but she had not the slightest misgivings as to it being that disorganized.

Still, she waited, though she felt like tearing some throats out due to the wait.

Finally, the door on the other side of the bars opened, with Zelda beholding a somewhat slovenly-looking Link; a prison uniform replaced his usual green tunic, and his hair was very unkempt, sapphire eyes having lost the luster they had once attained. The said eyes darted around, frightened at something nonexistent.

They finally fell on Zelda.

"Zelda…" said Link.

_At least he does not have the gall to call me 'baby'_, thought Zelda.

"Link," said the princess. "Why did you try to kill him?"

"I'm sorry, Zelda," said Link as he sat down in the chair, folding his hands neatly as they settled on the table. "I thought he was getting more popular than me. I… I don't know… It seems like everything I've ever done in my life… It seems like it was for attention…"

"Is that why?" asked the princess. "Because you are an attention whore?"

"I guess," said Link. "Listen, Zelda. I want a chance to change."

"Link, you know that the parole is high," said Zelda. "I could not—"

"Please," said Link. "I… I need a chance to start my life again. Please. Pay the parole and give me another—"

"No," said Zelda. "If you are trying to be free, it will not work."

"I am not trying to be free," said Link. "I just want the satisfaction of living a good life for once in my life!"

"I can't," said Zelda. "Anyways, I wanted to tell you that—"

"We don't have to have anything to do with each other if you do," said Link. "Just, please. Get me out of this place! I can't start over in here!"

"Link, the answer will be no," said Zelda. "You know that."

"Zelda, please," responded Link. "I just want a chance to change!"

"Knowing you, you won't," said Zelda. "You resisted Ganondorf's change, so I have reason to believe that you won't change either."

"Ganondorf's change?" asked Link with an expression of genuine curiosity on his face.

"Marth told me about it," responded the princess. "He tells me that before you had to screw your life up and murder three people so you could get to the one who isn't even dead yet, Ganondorf's people were branding him as a selfish man. He wanted to change, and you led a regiment of resistance against this. Marth was the only one who went to him with understanding for this. When this happened, I noticed Ganondorf grow more sociable and generally more like one with his environment. By the time the summer festival came around, the scales of good and evil between you and Ganondorf had switched so that you were evil and Ganondorf… was good…"

Link nodded, realizing he really needed to start over.

"I see," said Link. "I guess I will have to give him another chance then. But please, let me out!"

"I talk about something profound and yet all you can say is 'get me out of here'?" asked Zelda, anger showing in her voice.

"Please, Zelda," said Link. "Ganondorf changed; I can too."

"You don't know anything about change!" said Zelda, anger slowly building in her voice.

"Zelda, it is because I love you that—"

Link was cut off as Zelda stood up so abruptly that the chair she had been sitting on toppled over and fell to the ground with a decisive clang against the metal floor.

"Love?" asked Zelda, anger rising in her voice. "What do you know of love? You slept with Samus so you could get away with killing Ganondorf!"

"Zelda, I was high when I—"

"Don't you dare give me any of that, you son of a bitch!" shouted Zelda, finger pointed dangerously at the faux hero. "You will never change! I know it! You will always be the greedy, self-centered bastard that you have been since the day I saw you! You will never change!"

Zelda removed a glove, afterwards exposing a ring from her right ring finger. It was Link's present to her on her birthday before they went to the tournament together, and the gold shone brilliantly against the lighting of the visitor's room.

"I gave you my love!" shouted Zelda. "I gave you my time! I gave you my possessions for your use! I gave you myself! I gave you everything! And what do you do with that? You throw it away just so you can kill something for a reason as worthless as the one you gave me!"

After she finished this sentence, she forcefully grabbed the ring from her finger and wrenched it off.

"No!" shouted Zelda. "You don't deserve a chance to start your life again! You'll just mess it up like you did to this life! You will remain in here, where you and your inflated ego will rot until they kill you!"

With this, Zelda threw the ring in her hands at the hero, the ring barely missing his ear and clanging against the wall behind the fallen hero before coming to a stop by one of the table legs on Link's side of the table.

"That's love to you!" shouted Zelda. "You think it's something that can be thrown away! I will also bet that it is what you think of life! No! You don't deserve to be given a chance!"

At this, a tall, thin security guard in the usual police form walked in.

"Ma-am?" asked the officer.

"What?" asked Zelda, turning wildly at him.

"Some of the other visitors are requesting that you be escorted out of here for disorderly conduct," said the guard.

"Escort me, then," said Zelda. "I have nothing else to tell this man who used to be my love."

The security officer nodded, and Zelda walked out of the room, stepping over the chair.

As Zelda left the room, Link stretched his hand out, screaming the princess' name in a last resort to attain her. However, Zelda paid no heed, walking out as if nothing was out of the ordinary. The security person closed the door after her, the door closing shut like a gavel bang for the damnation of hope.

After this, Link lost it. He fell off of his chair to the side and lay on the floor, shuddering and wheezing as he cried his heart out to lament a lost chance at life and love.

* * *

"Link is to die in six months?" 

"Dear judge, don't you think that's too much?"

"Ha ha ha, Saria. It's so funny I forgot to laugh.

"Oh, come on Lilina! Be light-hearted now!"

"Saria, you are always so emotional. Please, tone it down."

Roy shook his head as he stood at the cash register of his work place.

His three coworkers were having an argument over Link; two of them had been obsessed with Link from the start of the tournament. Malon and Saria stood at the display cases, while Lilina worked from the opposite cash register. All of them wore white shirts with black pants as they worked as opposed to their normal clothing.

"But it's not fair!" said Malon as she sailed to Lilina, earthen locks of hair flowing behind in perfect canon. "It's not fair."

"Actually, according to me, it is," said Roy. "Remember that he is the reason I'm here today and that I can't get what I want with Zelda."

"Aw, don't say that," said Saria, emerald eyes and hair turning to greet the prince. "I'm sure he could be forgiven."

"He rampaged around a mansion, attacked five people, successfully killed three, mutilated one, and sent another in a coma," said Lilina. "I wouldn't forgive him for that."

"Aw, come on Lilina!" said Malon, hands clasping to her shoulders. "You know how he was so popular."

"Yeah, come on!" said Saria.

"Well, you did hear about what he did for his defense, right?" asked Roy.

"Yes," said Malon. "But that doesn't matter a bit. He tried to rid the world of the evil Gerudo man."

"For god's sake, do you even know what you're talking about with the 'Gerudo man'?" asked Lilina. "If you ask me, you're being racist right now."

"Hey!" shouted Saria and Malon in unison.

At this point, a young man walked up to the display case. Malon returned to her spot as he approached.

"Hello, gentleman," said Malon. "How may I help you?"

"I was looking for a good engagement ring for my girlfriend," said the man. "I want to marry her soon. Does that ring with the alexandrite formation on top cost a lot?"

"What's your budget?" asked Saria.

"Under one thousand dollars," said the man.

"This is only around eight hundred or so," said Malon.

"Then I'll take that, please!" said the man.

Malon opened the display case from her side and grabbed the ring mentioned, then walked to the cash register Roy was at and dropped the ring. The man followed the ring's path there as he whipped out his credit card. He handed it to Roy, who then swiped the card in the scanner and punched some keys there.

"Here you go, sir," said Roy.

The Pherean prince then grabbed a bag and handed the ring to him.

"There you go, sir," said Roy. "Have a nice day, and thank you for shopping with us today."

"Thank you," said the man as he exited the store.

As soon as the man exited the store, Malon's face put on a lamentation.

"Aw!" said Malon. "I want to be his fiancée! He was so… hot…"

Saria shook her head a little, rolling her eyes upwards as she did.

"Malon…" said Saria. "When will you stop being so boy-crazy?"

"When the world ends, from what she says," said Lilina.

"Seriously," said Roy. "I remember she was all over me when I first got the job."

"I still think you're hot!" said Malon.

"I know, I know," said Roy. "But I still wish Zelda was here."

"Roy, you spend way too much time thinking about her," said Lilina. "Let it go!"

"Now that I have more hope of getting what I want than ever, do you think I can?" asked Roy.

"Good point," said Saria.

At this point the door opened.

"Hello, sir," said Malon almost instinctively. "How may I help—"

Malon's eyes flew open when she saw she was talking to a woman.

The simple girl then ran away from the display case into the worker's lounge, yelling at the top of her lungs. Saria and Lilina started to laugh as she ran.

"That Malon is so assumptive…" said Lilina as she laughed, oceanic strands of hair coming down all over the place. "Wouldn't you think so, Roy?"

Roy remained silent, looking at who was in front of her in a slight amount of shock.

"Roy!" said Saria. "Lilina asked a question! She expects to get it answered!"

"Zelda?" asked Roy to the customer.

It was indeed the Hylian princess; she stood in front of Roy, eyes slightly downcast.

"I never thought I would use your information," said Zelda. "And yet, here I am."

"Why do you say that?" asked Saria.

"Girls!" said Roy. "This is a private conversation, thank you very much. Anyways, I would have asked that, but she said it."

"Well, Link did things with Samus, and I broke up with him," said Zelda. "But Roy, I don't know if I did the right thing…"

Roy sat at the register, thinking for a while. He did not want to deceive Zelda into hating her former boyfriend in any way, and yet he knew that he had this opportunity to seize the day to win her affections.

Finally, Roy thought of something he could say that would meet both desires of his.

"Was he a bad man to you when your relationship ended?" asked Roy.

"Yes," said Zelda. "That, and he slept with the bounty hunter to exact revenge."

"Then what is there to think about?" asked Roy. "I'll tell you what; meet me at my apartment after work."

"All right," said Zelda. "You will call, right?"

"Of course," said Roy. "I'll see you later."

"Bye," said the princess.

She then exited the store.

Roy let out a dreamy sigh.

"She's so hot…" he uttered.

"I'll say," said Lilina. "I do think that the men would be all over her."

"No wonder you fell for her," said Saria. "I hope that you can maintain a relationship better than Link did."

They nodded and stood there as Malon crept out of the employee-only area.

* * *

Bowser sat at the mess hall at night. 

He had written the letter that Peach had dictated to him a few hours ago and had sent it afterwards. Now, there was nothing left to do but wonder.

Mario had not known a thing about what happened in the mansion; Bowser was worried about the initial reaction that Mario would have upon receiving the letter. He hoped that Mario would get over the shock wherever he was, and he hoped that he had given the facts straight.

Bowser worried mostly for Peach's sake; she had been very worried about Mario from the beginning of his departure, and he did everything in his power to keep Peach comfortable. Whatever he was doing, though, it felt like it was never enough, even though he did everything that came to his mind.

The king shook his head as he ate a ham sandwich.

At this point, Zelda entered the mess hall and sat somewhere, face calm as always.

Bowser noticed her entrance.

"Hey, Zelda," said the king. "How are you?"

"I feel great," said the princess. "Roy really is a nice person."

"Really?" asked Bowser. "How'd the date go?"

"It went really well," said Zelda. "He was nice and everything."

"Great!" said Bowser. "I hope your relationship with him goes well."

"Thank you," said Zelda. "I better go to my room now. See you later."

Bowser waved his hand as she exited.

The king was happy for Zelda; she had managed to move on from Link. Of course, the fact that she was angry at Link for sleeping with Samus added fuel to the fire of moving on, but Bowser had had an inkling that it would still be pretty hard.

He nodded to himself, contented in quite a few things in his life and the lives of some of the people around him.


	28. Chapter 28: Funeral Planning

Hello, children.

I'm back home now, and adjusting is a little hard; my parents made the house up again when I got home, so I had to get used to new furniture. Also, my feet smell like the dorm bathroom after not being in there for close to a week. It's been hard, but I shall overcome.

So that's all from here.

The funeral is next chapter. I can't wait to write it out...

And here's the chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 28: Funeral Planning 

Matthew sat in front of his desk with his hands on his face.

He had gotten what he wanted with Link. His punishment was just and fair. He should have been happy.

Matthew had known that he would be grieving Luigi and Cornelia afterwards, though. He had anticipated this, but he had never known it would hit him so strongly.

The head of the tournament shook his head, some tears coming to mind. He knew he should have saved the tears for the funeral, but he could not help it.

He had isolated himself from the others again after the trial finished. He treated those affected negatively (which by this point comprised the entire organization) to a victory dinner the night after the trial, but it was still not enough to help Matthew over the grief. He found it hard, and he had no idea why. He would have to think about it later, but until he had an answer he wouldn't let anybody see him.

A knock came on his door as he sat.

"Who's there?" asked Matthew, hands kneading his head.

"It's Falco and I!" shouted Fox's voice from the other side of the door.

"Stay out!" said Matthew.

"Why would we do that?" asked Falco's voice from the other side of the door. "Ye've holed yaself up in here, and we can't help but wonder if ya aint dead yet."

"I'm not dead!" said Matthew. "I just want to be left alone for a while…"

"What are you doing, anyway?" asked Fox.

"Thinking," said Matthew.

"Well, we could help if you said your thoughts out loud," said Fox.

"I can't form a coherent thought right now…" said Matthew. "I need time to think about it."

"Well, okay," said Falco. "Just be sure tah let us know once you're done thinkin'."

Matthew nodded, even though he knew that Falco and Fox could not see it.

The head of the tournament had a feeling that he would be thinking for quite a while.

* * *

White was splashed onto four walls, with only two windows to provide a break from the monotony. One showed a view of Smash City in its usual evening rush hour, the other into a doctor's office with the things one would find in a normal office. In the middle of the room sat a bed with green bed sheets offering a drapery for its occupant. Next to the bed sat the prince of Altea. 

The prince had returned to the mansion for one day to witness the trial. When he had quite unexpectedly revealed Link to be a liar, Ganondorf had been saved from certain death if he had woken up a criminal.

However, he returned to the hospital room the next day; he did not trust the ER doctors, and to that end he would fulfill his own sense of the need to be beside the man he loved when he woke up.

Marth could not admit it to anybody; he was in love. Ever since Ganondorf had told Marth that he did nothing wrong, there was a small little feeling inside of his heart that was begging for release. He realized it after the Summer Festival, and afterwards he had come to terms with it; he really did not mind being in love with Ganondorf so long as they could trust each other.

Thus, it really hurt him to watch Ganondorf undergo all of the incessant pain that the world put him through. It hurt him to watch Ganondorf bring himself into an internal conflict that seemed to have no remedy. It hurt him to watch Ganondorf being shot by Link while Marth told him to move.

However, it hurt him most of all to watch Ganondorf being insulted behind his back by everybody. True, the trial had told everybody that maybe the Gerudo king was a good person, but there were still negative feelings abounding about him. He had heard some things from the doctors the other day while he sat keeping his hourly vigil by Ganondorf's side; he had heard that one of the doctors wished Ganondorf to be in the morgue instead of Room 513 of the Smash Island Baptist Hospital. He then went on to explain that while he felt that Link lied, he still believed that Ganondorf did do all of the things he said he did. Marth was not about to deny Ganondorf's past, but it pained him to think that others would think that Ganondorf could not change and that he deserved to die because of what he did. Marth's father was a worse person than Ganondorf; while the Gerudo king made plays for power but knew when enough was enough, the Altean king murdered his own people simply to cast revenge on his son.

The doctor did not know anything about what an evil king really was.

And unfortunately, Marth felt this would be set in stone until something happened. He was very sure that this something would not happen for a while.

Marth terribly wanted to cry, but he decided to hold on to the masculinity that he had by not crying.

He did this for himself, as well as for Ganondorf. Marth was pretty sure Ganondorf would never forgive the prince for crying about such a small trifle. There was hope, and while there was there was no need to cry.

Thus, the prince carried on in his lonely vigil.

* * *

"Ness, please!" 

"Nana, the funeral is tomorrow. We can't be playing games before that!"

"Ness, we can play before a funeral. Who says we can't?"

"Hello! Popo is one of the ones sleeping in a coffin forever starting tomorrow!"

"Okay, you know what Ness? You're starting to get out of hand. I'm not even part of the Bowser family and I still think you're doing that."

"And I say you are getting out of hand!"

An angered Ness stormed out of the garden after saying this.

Bowser Jr. shook his head. The group had been getting plenty of smart-aleck comments from Ness over the past few days, and it only intensified with each passing hour. Whatever the source of it was, it was definitely hard to follow since Ness never spoke about it.

Young Link just shook his head.

"There are some things about that kid I will never understand…" he said.

"I agree…" said Bowser Jr. "Ness is being unreasonable right now."

"I don't want it to get out of hand…" said Nana. She looked in the direction that Ness stormed in, kneeling on the damp earth.

"Don't worry, Nana," said Bowser Jr. as he approached the young ice climber. "We'll put some sense into him sometime. Maybe not now, but we'll figure out what's going on here so we can tell him he's wrong."

The girl looked at the large turte and nodded.

"I want to, too…" said Nana. "And no matter what, I will do it with you."

The turtle nodded.

"So, you going to the funeral tomorrow?" asked Young Link. This was directed at the young koopa.

"Yeah," said Bowser Jr. "I don't think I could forgive myself if I disregarded the dead."

"Really?" asked Nana. "Why is that?"

"People are so into their lives that they forget that life is so fragile," said the young koopa. "Somebody dies every day. We may not know anything about whoever dies, but rest assured people die every day. Nobody ever notices because most of the time the people dying have no relation to them."

"Really?" asked Nana.

"So you respect the dead then?" asked Young Link.

The koopa nodded.

"I actually have a flower garden in the courtyard of my castle," said Bowser Jr. "I tend to it every day, and I plant one new flower every night for each group of people that die every day."

"Really?" asked Young Link.

"I think it's… thoughtful…" said Nana. "You don't even know most of them and yet you respect them as much as you are able to."

"You really think so?" asked Bowser.

"Yes," said Nana.

"Thank you," said Bowser Jr.

Young Link jumped off of the bench he had been sitting on and walked to the door.

"I'm gonna go in," said Young Link. "See you guys later."

"Bye," said the other two children in unison as Young Link stepped into the mansion.

"So, is there anything we can do out here?" asked Nana.

"Well, I think we could play tag," said the young koopa.

"But who's going to be it?" asked Nana.

"Simple," said Bowser Jr.

He walked back a few steps, pausing at a certain point as Nana stood up, eyes following his movements.

"You better start running!" shouted the boy. "Because I'm coming right for you!"

The boy ran, Nana beginning to run with a giggle in her voice as she did.

* * *

Mario sat in his apartment, watching the TV. He watched it with a blank expression on his face. 

The seven-o'clock news was droning on in its quest to inform people about certain things, but Mario watched it anyway. He usually watched it whenever he felt obliged to.

So far, he had been hearing about a massive hurricane that had hit a third-world country and reports about a funeral that was supposed to be taking place and that he was not sure he should be hearing on news if it was small.

Currently, they were covering the crisis in the third world country; apparently the hurricane had left a huge mark on the country, and it needed everybody's help. All of the major countries vowed to help, but Mario figured they would not help completely.

The plumber had been doing rather well after the incident; he had apologized to Wario and everything was good again. He still hung on to his alias, however, as he feared having to return to the mansion. He wondered how things were at the mansion, though; something told him that terrible things had happened in his absence.

He heard a rap on his door as a president of a country somewhere was making a speech on the topic.

"Come in!" said Mario.

The door opened, and in came Meta.

"Hello, Mario," said Meta as he held a letter in his hand. "How are you today?"

"I'm fine," said Mario.

"Great," said the landlord. "Listen; the letter from the mansion just arrived."

Mario's head turned to face Meta, excitement in his eyes.

"Really?" asked Mario. "That's-a great!"

"Glad you think that," said Meta. "Here."

The landlord handed the letter to the plumber.

"Thank-a you!" said Mario.

"You're welcome," said Meta. "Now if you will excuse me I have some business to attend to."

"Right," said Mario. "See you-a later!"

Meta nodded politely and exited the apartment. Mario sat down at his couch and opened the letter. He glanced briefly at the news before putting the TV on mute and taking a slip of paper out of the envelope. He unfolded it and noticed Bowser's handwriting.

_Hey!_ thought Mario. _I thought I told him to keep his mouth shut about it!_

He shrugged, though, and read it to find the following text:

"**Dear Mario:**

**Where have you been this entire time? We have been worried, especially the doctor.**

**This is Peach talking now. I had to tell Bowser because… well… I will explain in a minute. But please, understand that Luigi was unable to get the letter.**

**So much has happened since you left. ****It's… sad…**

**I'm sorry, Mario. I wish I was not the one telling you this, but nobody else will, so here I go…**

**Luigi… is dead." **(Here, Mario rubbed his eyes to make sure he was not seeing things. After this, he continued reading.) **"It's complicated; Link went on a rampage in the mansion trying to kill Ganondorf. In the end, Cornelia, Luigi, and Popo all died by his hand, Ganondorf is in a coma, and I lost my arm to his blade. (Which is why I had to tell Bowser; he wrote this for me.) It also led to a lot of other things, but Mario, Luigi is dead.**

**His final words are the worst of it, though. I can't figure them out! He told Matthew "Mario… why…?" as he breathed his last. ****I think he accused you, but I don't know.**

**So much has changed, Mario. And you haven't known a thing…**

**I can't keep this up. I'll burst to tears just talking about the fact that you knew nothing until now…**

**Sincerely,**

**Peach Toadstool**

**Written By Bowser**"

Mario had to blink to make sure he was not seeing things.

_Luigi… is dead…?_ thought Mario.

He then remembered the funeral that was being covered by the news. The letter that had supposedly come from Peach suddenly piqued his curiosity, and Mario pressed the mute button on his TV.

"—ews, the funeral for the three people that were killed by a rampaging Link is going to be tomorrow," said the news pilot nonchalantly as he sat in his desk. "Unfortunately, Mr. Matthew Hand is unavailable for interview, but we did get word from officials of Smash City about the funeral. The turnout is going to be high there, so we will be covering that more tomorrow during the funeral. The story is rather sad, but we will get to that tomorrow. Peg—?"

Mario turned the TV off. As the sun set behind the building across the street, Mario looked forward in disbelief.

Suddenly, he sniffled, and in an instant, he laid over the couch as tears worked their way down his cheeks.

He repeatedly shook his head, hands gripping the cushions of the couch as he cried into them.

The plumber was only able to mutter one phrase through all of this.

"What-a the hell have I done…?"


	29. Chapter 29: Lacrimosa

Hello, children. What's up?

I'm starting to get used to home. My feet still stink of the dorm bathroom, but personally, I don't care.

I couldn't wait to write the last scene in the chapter. Unfortunately, I will never be satisfied with it. The thing is, what happens on screen will sometimes have more power in what is shown than what can be written in words. Writing is great for thought processes to be explained, don't get me wrong, but in some things, the theater will be eternally more powerful. For my faithful reviewers, I won't say why, but for the people that never review, go watch the 1959 version of the film _Imitation of Life_ and you'll see what I mean.

There's another reference to music here; another quotation from the Requiem mass appears here; this time, it's the Lacrimosa, which describes the sadness of judgement day and stuff. You know where that leads.

I can't say much else because I don't have much else to say. Here's the chapter, and if you aren't crying by the end of it... well...

I don't know what I'm gonna do.

* * *

Chapter 29: Lacrimosa

Pit sat in his office trying to get paperwork done. He sat at his desk, reading through each minute detail and signing it whenever he agreed to a certain term here or a condition there or even a little change in regulation at the top of the pile.

Somehow, though, he felt unfocused that day. He had been too distracted by Massimo's reaction to Wario's bisexuality to think. True, the Italian had apologized to the former homeless man, but it still rang in his mind.

The angel figured that Massimo was homophobic, but if he let his homophobia build to such an extreme something terrible must have happened to him then. Whatever it was, Massimo insisted that he not tell. Pit respected his wishes, but he really did not want Massimo to kill the next homosexual he met simply because he bottled up an emotion towards one person who did something to him that the Italian would never talk about.

Pit shook his head.

_Damn it, Pit!_ he thought. _You're at work now! You can't think about it!_

The thought had been bugging the poor angel constantly over the course of the past few days; however, he was never able to efficiently scare the thought before it set foot again in his mind. He knew he could not let it get in his way, though, and with this he was usually able to hold up a normal understanding of life as it passed by him every second.

Still, Pit wondered what could possibly have happened for Massimo to hate homosexuals.

The phone rang as he signed his name on a sheet. He sighed, finished signing his name, and picked up the receiver.

"Hello, Pit Angelian from the Parmatech Battery Factory calling," said Pit nonchalantly. "How may I help you?"

"Pit, there you are!" came Palutena's voice from the phone.

Pit silently slammed his fist on the desk. He knew Palutena could wait to say what she wanted until after work, so he decided to tell her to wait until he called.

"Listen, Palutena," said Pit. "I'm very busy right now, as you should know. You mind if I call back later?"

"But this is urgent!" said Palutena. "It is about Massimo!"

The angel put on a curious expression as he sat.

"Really?" asked Pit. "What's up with him?"

"He left on a flight to Smash Island a few minutes ago!" exclaimed Palutena. "I am just leaving Die Engelien International Airport!"

"Well, why's that a big deal?" asked Pit. "He's probably on vacation and he forgot to tell us."

"But Pit, there is a funeral there today at three o'clock!" said Palutena. "Massimo was dressed in black!"

"He is?" asked Pit. "And what else is there?"

"Nothing," said Palutena. "We should go find him there after you leave work."

"Why would we do that?" asked Pit.

"I am worried for him," said Palutena. "I am afraid of him going berserk on somebody."

"Relax," said Pit. "If anything, Massimo will be fine out there. I know him well enough that he won't beat up random people if he thinks they're gay. Listen, I gotta go now. I'll call you after work. Put that funeral on when it comes time, and when I call you can start giving me updates on what's going on, okay?"

"All right," said Palutena. "Goodbye!"

"Bye, sweetie!" said Pit.

The angel hung up, then turned back to the paperwork.

He wondered if Massimo was going to the funeral simply because he could or because of something else.

He had strong feelings towards the latter…

* * *

Candles burned in a massive number of hands as thousands of pairs of eyes looked ahead of them to see three coffins in front of them. A black throng took hold of the pews immediately in front of the coffins, and an air of great sadness hung in the air, never to leave as long as the black throng was there. 

The candles provided the only true light in the room; the sunlight was pouring in from the stained-glass windows of the church, but the light provided was not sufficient, for it was of the wrong character and did not come from the hearts of the thousands of people in attendance.

Overhead, a bell chimed several times. It was the only bell ringing in Smash Island that day, for all others were silenced in mourning for everybody. Why it was an island-wide event could be anybody's guess, but people were too sad to care.

The doctor sat in the front pew with the rest of the smashers and the family of the departed. Mario was the only one who did not arrive at the funeral, but the doctor figured it was out of spite more than anything.

Even Luigi's mother had made it to the funeral, even in as horrible a condition as she was from years of being in a whorehouse. She cried silent tears for her lost son, and only one of his brothers was there to comfort the poor woman.

The doctor kept his head bowed, listening to the bells and the droning of various murmurings between the attendees. The doctor really tried not to cry, and yet something in him was telling him to let it out. Thus, a small orb of water sat perched on the doctor's eyelashes waiting for the word to drop down on the doctor's cheeks.

Eventually, the constant drone of voices in the background died down as a priest in black robes ascended to a podium that stood next to the coffins. Everybody got seated, and the funeral commenced.

"Today, we gather to remember the three people here that have died in the prime of their years of unnatural causes," began the priest. "These people were taken away in the peak of their lives, be it happy, sad, or in a state that they told nobody. These three mattered to the ones who were close enough to get the privilege to know them, and they shall be missed. However, we must remember them as the smiling, happy people that they were before they left this world, and take comfort in the fact that they are in a better world than this. We must also remember them by the accomplishments they made to better our lives. I ask you to join in prayer as we pray to the lord for their salvation."

The priest lifted his hands up into the air, with many people in the black mass in front of the coffin clasping hands to pray for the deceased.

"Our father, we ask you to take these people into your kingdom, and to be merciful on their souls no matter what has happened in the past," said the priest. "We also ask of you to provide your condolences to the people related to the deceased and to grant them your consoling power as they cope with the loss of their loved ones. Of this, we ask you, our lord Jesus Christ."

An 'amen' rang throughout the crowd in somber tones.

"The relatives of the deceased would like to take this time to say words about their loved ones," said the priest. "We begin with Mr. Matthew Hand, whose dear sister Cornelia and dear friend Luigi are to rest in peace today."

Silence pervaded the church as the former hand stood to walk up to the podium. The priest shook Matthew's hand as he arrived at the podium. Then, the two switched places, the priest standing a short distance away from the podium as Matthew stood at the podium.

"It is hard to say farewell to anybody you love," said Matthew. "That's the first thing many people will tell you who have lost their loved ones. I always used to scoff at that, figuring it could not be so."

He gestured the coffins.

"But these three boxes here today testify that we are not forever," said Matthew. "I learned this, the hard way. Now, not only have I lost my dear sister and friend, but also two companions that I would have trusted for my entire life. Such is a hard loss to endure. However, the important thing about a loss is that it always tells you that you should cherish the good times you have in your life. Poor Luigi had a difficult life, but there were times where happiness touched him in ways one never would expect. Happiness touches everybody, and for this reason, it is inadvisable to dwell on such an event. I will always mourn their loss somewhere in my heart, but in a larger part of it I must carry on, for them."

Matthew nodded, and left the podium, the priest taking his place.

"Next, we will ask Dr. Mario, brother of Luigi Mario, to speak for us today," said the priest.

The doctor stood up, and a silence again took hold as he took his place at the podium.

"My brother…" said the doctor. "My brother had a very turbulent life towards the end of it. We all knew what was going on, and yet we made no attempt to fill the holes in his life. I will not criminalize anybody here, but we let him wither, and we let him die. However, I am not about to blame anybody, for I am as guilty as everybody else. The best we can do now is to be there for each other and remind ourselves that in some way, we all share the blame for many things. However, it will never bring my brother back, and I will eternally miss him as he was at the county fair so many years ago. We would always tell each other the most outrageous things, and for being one of his companions during his life, I am thankful."

The doctor left the podium and sat down.

"Bowser, whose friend Popo Climber passed away among these three, would like to say a few words about Popo," said the priest.

As the koopa king stood up, a small murmur went through among the fans of Peach in the audience. Despite the fact that the princess and the turtle had made up for all of those multiple kidnappings, some still did not like the king, thinking him to be an emotionless kidnapper. Why he would speak for a child was beyond them.

When Bowser took his spot at the podium, he cleared his throat before beginning.

"Popo…" began the king. "He was very much like my own son, Bowser Jr.; kind, funny, and smiled at everything, no matter how somber. I remember when he used to play games with the other children and even involved me one time. His last moment was a brave one, as well, and I will never forget the brave sacrifice he made to ensure my place in this world. However, the smile will never be there. The laughter will never be there. His four playmates are still alive, but the times they will play will never be the same. Nothing will be the same after his death. To me, he was the second son that I never had, and I will eternally miss him for that. I was lucky to meet him, and I will always remember him as the happy, smiling boy that he was."

He left the podium, and some swore they were able to see traces of a tear on his eye. As he returned to his seat a hushed murmur went through the crowd.

The rest of the funeral dragged on, and for Dr. Mario it moved as it should have moved.

However, he could not help but notice a large hole in his heart that could not be filled no matter what he did.

He knew this hole would remain for a while.

* * *

_Damn it! Where is the damn street?_

Mario ran throughout the streets of Smash City, scanning each street sign as he did in hopes of finding the church that the funeral was in.

He was sad, and he wanted to let his brother know that he was sorry for bringing it to the extreme that he killed himself because of him. To Mario, the fact that Link killed Luigi was nonexistent; there was only Luigi's bitter question that ended his life.

He did not care if he arrived late. Hell, he could arrive at the procession and scream his name out to the heavens if he had to. However, he would never forgive himself if he did not let his brother know while he was out of the ground that he was sorry.

Mario had some homeless men to contend with, but he ignored them for the most part. He was too busy trying to get to the funeral to care about the trifles of homeless men.

For the plumber, every second mattered. And if he wasted any of it, he would never forgive himself for the rest of his life

Suddenly, he passed a street sign with the name Church Hill Avenue on it.

_There it is!_ thought the plumber.

He turned, looking for anything vaguely resembling people, finding the spire of the church on his left.

He then promptly ran down the street in the direction of the church, dodging a car as he did. He eventually ran to find some security guards in his way. Why Matthew had decided to implant security guards was beyond him.

Mario had arrived just as the caskets were being loaded into the black car that sends people to their final resting place; the people thronged about in the air as a group of four men brought an orange-colored casket forward.

He walked forward when the hefty hand of a security guard grabbed his wrist.

"Hey!" he said. "Where do you think you're going? Intruders such as you can't get in!"

"But I'm-a not an intruder…" said Mario weakly.

"That's what they all say," said the guard.

"No!" said Mario. "You don't-a understand!"

"Yes, I do," said the guard. "Now I will kindly ask you to leave before I get the guard to pommel you up good.

Mario glanced back at the church.

Sure enough, four other people were carrying a green coffin to the automobile that would bring them there.

"But you don't-a understand!" said Mario as he walked towards the funeral.

He was only pulled back by the guard.

"What did I tell you?" asked the guard.

Suddenly, an animalistic instinct sparked up in Mario's being as the coffin neared the cart. The guard began to pull him away.

"No! No!" said Mario, almost in a shout as he struggled in the man's grip. "You don't-a understand! He is-a my brother!"

With this, Mario broke free and ran to the car as quickly as he could. Nobody was in his way and the guards were too shocked by his statement to run after him.

Thus, nobody stopped him as he ran to the casket containing his dear brother Luigi.

And then, right when the casket was loaded into the car and the other Smashers walked outside after it, Mario broke through the thin stretch of crowd in his way, opened the doors that separated him from his brother, and threw himself on the green casket.

"Brother!" he yelled with a voice projecting like a herald's trumpet. "Forgive-a me!"

He said this as he swayed back a bit, face rising to meet the heavens as a batch of tears found its way down the familiar road of his cheeks.

"Forgive-a me!" he yelled again. "I killed-a you!"

"Mario!" said Peach's voice somewhere.

Whatever Peach had said went unnoticed by Mario, however.

"Luigi!" he yelled, not noticing the rushing of footsteps towards him. "Please! Forgive-a me! Forgive-a me!"

Suddenly, Mario felt an arm and part of an arm wrap around him that separated him from his brother.

"Mario!" said Peach. "Settle down!"

However, by this time Mario had told everything that he needed to say.

Thus, as the door closed between him and his brother forever, he broke down and sobbed on Peach's stomach.

"Oh…" said Peach, kneeling down to his level. "There, there. I'm here."

Mario sobbed on her shoulder, and she stood up.

"Come," she said, taking the plumber's right hand in her only hand.

She simply walked to a limousine a short ways off, Mario in tow. He stepped in, after which Peach boarded the limousine herself. The door closed after her, and then a slow and somber procession to the burial ground began.

When Mario looked to his left, he found the doctor sitting next to him.

"Doctor…" said Mario simply.

The doctor looked at him, a calm yet caring expression on his face. Mario suddenly felt several pairs of eyes on him.

"Mario…" said the doctor.

Nothing else was said before Mario collapsed into the doctor's shoulders. The doctor wrapped his arms around the plumber, patting his back and whispering soothing words into his ear.


	30. Chapter 30: Requiescant in Pace

Hello, people. The next chapter is here. 

I made some people cry. I never expected that to happen; on screen, you could cry for ten minutes longer than if it was on a page. Still, seeing a guy beg for forgiveness at a funeral in such a dramatic way can soften the hardest of hearts. 

Anyways, you know the rest. More things from the Latin language in the title; this time, it's the phrase "rest in peace", which is important for the end. After that, I can get to some things with Ganondorf... 

So let's get started, shall we? 

Here's the next chapter. Enjoy! 

* * *

Chapter 30: Requiescant in Pace

Pit stared into the phone, shocked at what he had heard.

"Wait," said Pit. "So you mean to tell me that Massimo was Mario Mario?"

"I believe so," said the voice on the other side of the line. "I thought there was something about him…"

"Okay…" said Pit embarrassedly. "That was rather… odd of him. So something happened to him that he wanted to get away from the mansion?"

"Finding out Dr. Mario was gay," said the voice on the other line. "He thought his brothers would lust after him."

"Jesus Christ," said Pit putting his hand to his forehead. "Why did he have to make life so difficult for those that cared about him?"

"That's a good question…" said the voice on the other line. "Anyways, I better go. I have a dress that's begging to be sewed next."

"Right," said Pit. "Bye."

He placed the receiver into the unit and sighed.

Palutena had called him after the funeral ended that Massimo had shown up at the funeral, but that you could tell he had because he shouted out to Luigi's spirits to forgive him. Of course, Pit did not believe that the human voice could reach heaven, but he knew how some people were. Apparently, the man had referred to Luigi as brother, which verified the theory more than it was.

Wario was in the apartment, trying to get water out of one of the keys of his instrument, and when he looked up he noticed Pit standing there.

"Palutena, yes?" asked Wario.

"Yes," said Pit. "Apparently, Mario Mario was under our noses the entire time, and he gave his name as Massimo thinking we would turn him in to Matthew Hand if he told."

"Now why would he want to stay away from there so much?" asked Wario as he took out a small piece of paper that he had inserted into the key to help him get the water out.

"Because he thought his brothers would lust after him," said Pit. "They were both gay. One of them was the one buried today, and God knows why he went back there."

"I can see, then…" said Wario, putting the part of the instrument he had worked on back in its case and closing it with a little click. "I wonder why some people are so afraid of them."

"I don't know…" said Pit. "Even worse, we don't have Mario to tell us…"

"I know what you mean…" said Wario. "You think we can ask the operator at the mansion to see if Mario is there so we can ask him?"

"I think so," said Pit. "I don't know the country code for Smash Island though…"

Wario stood up and walked to a cabinet, where he found the yellow pages sitting there, dust collecting on the covers.

"Man, do you actually use the yellow pages?" asked Wario as he brushed some of the dust away.

"Not really…" said Pit.

A low growl came from the fat man as he looked into the pages, looking for the country codes.

"Okay!" said Wario. "The country code is 589!"

"Great!" said Pit. "The phone number of the mansion?" he asked.

"That is another story…" said Wario as he flipped through the pages of the thick yellow book.

* * *

Mario sat in his former dorm, toying with Link's items a little as he sat there. 

He wondered why nobody bothered to get Link's possessions out of the room before they sent him to the jailhouse. It would have made Mario's stay at the mansion before returning to Die Engelein a little less awkward, but he decided to let it rest.

All of the smashers had been raving over his return to the mansion; Peach and the doctor especially were fervent over it. Mario had decided to tell the two of them what had happened to him for him to think that his own brothers would lust after him, after which they chided him for thinking that something that was done by one person should constitute an entire group of people. Mario afterwards had apologized to the doctor for disowning him, after which the finalizing of the dissipation of Mario's homophobia was complete.

Now, there was nothing to do but wait to return to Die Engelein. He had already made his position clear, and he had gathered plenty of post office box numbers and had handed out his address so he could keep in touch with his friends.

He was waiting for Pit or Meta or maybe even Palutena to call next. Thus, he held the cellular phone in his hand waiting for the ringtone that would tell him that somebody was calling him.

He had waited for several minutes, having just settled into the mattress that was his bed. He would be using it for one night only; he would return to Die Engelein the next day, and he would remind himself to keep in touch with his friends on Smash Island.

Finally, a short piece of music played from the phone's speakers, and he lifted it up and answered the call.

"Hello?" asked Mario.

"Aha!" said Pit's voice from the other line. "About time I run into Mister Mario Mario again!"

"So you-a figured it out," said Mario.

"Yep," said Pit. "I'm sorry about your brother…"

"No, no…" said Mario. "That was-a my fault."

"You really think so?" asked Pit. "Because we all know that Link was the—"

"Link-a killed my brother physically," said Mario. "I gave-a him mental prompting."

"Well, that makes sense, I guess," said Pit. "So you coming back here or…?"

"Yes," said Mario. "I'm-a coming back. Matthew-a paid for the flight and-a everything."

"Well, that's great!" said Pit. "We miss you over here."

"Okay," said Mario. "Anyways, that's all I wanted to say, so I'll see you tomorrow."

"Right," said Pit. "See you then."

"Bye-bye!" said Mario.

Both sides hung up simultaneously.

The Italian sighed, and then looked up at the ceiling.

Luigi was dead, but now he was able to rest in peace since his brother had come to terms with himself. In a way, Mario found he was content with himself now that he had let his reasons for hating homosexuals out. For the plumber, it was fulfilling.

However, he still had a hole in himself from not wishing Luigi to peace. He had begged forgiveness was all, but now he needed to see Luigi to his afterlife.

Thus, he pulled out a small volume that lay on his desk. Mario really knew he should not have stolen something from Link's shelves, but nobody would notice if he did unless they saw him reading from the text of the book.

Mario then opened it to a certain page, and then the following came from his lips:

"_In paradisum deducant te Angeli: in tuo adventuo suscipiant te Martyres, et perducant te in civitatem sanctam Jerusalem. Chorus angelorum te suscipiat, et cum Lazaro quondam paupere aeternam habeas requiem. Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine; et lux perpetua luceat eis._"

Mario finished reading this portion of the poetry written on said page, and then looked at the final lines. He took a slow breath before reading them.

"_Requiescant in pace_."

The last line of the page came out almost inaudibly.

"Amen."


	31. Chapter 31: Pini del Via Appia

Hello, children. 

School starts next week. God, summer went by so quickly this year. 

Anyways, I don't have a whole lot to say, except now I've got an addiction to _Sonic and the Secret Rings_. It often makes me wonder, though; if Eggman is King Sharhyar (however it's spelled), Tails is Ali Baba, and Knuckles is Sinbad, then does that make Maria Scheherazade, Cream the slave girl of Ali Baba who does away with the 40 thieves, and various other characters people who make cameos within the voyages of Sinbad? It always makes me wonder... 

All that aside, there's a music reference here; this time, it's the last movement of the _Pines of Rome_, which is basically one of those great utter hopelessness to great triumph moments in music. Since Ganondorf wakes up this chapter, it should be pretty obvious why I chose that. 

And now, I think I should get to the chapter. 

Enjoy! 

* * *

Chapter 31: Pini del Via Appia

Marth sat in the hospital room, nervousness shining on his face as he sat waiting for something.

The day before was the progress examination given by the hospital that they administered to all of the comatose patients that lived within the confines of the hospital. Marth was anxiously waiting for the results to reach his ears, as he was sure that the doctors would not want anybody who cared about Ganondorf to be left without knowledge of his state of mind and the fact that he had come to know some of the doctors as people.

The prince usually found himself spacing out into space along multiple trains of thought on Ganondorf. Marth knew that many wives waited for their husbands to wake from a coma in many other hospital rooms on the floor Marth was on, but he had no idea that he would go through such an experience in thought. When he thought it was only him, he asked the multiple women that were waiting outside of their spouse's rooms during the time that the patients' feeding tubes had to be refilled, and they all told him that they went on wild trains of thought while they waited for the awakening of their loved ones. He was also told that he was not alone on when his train ended; most of the time, everybody's trains of thought crashed when an aide told them to step outside and that the refill time had come and they were supposed to step outside.

Marth thought about many things in this train of thought, but the thoughts came out so jumbled that the prince was unable to make sense of any of it. He wondered how his train of thought came out so jumbled since he usually thought thoughts that were coherent enough to make sense out of.

Finally, the chaos ended when the door opened. He saw the chief doctor of the hospital there, standing with a somewhat defeated expression riding beneath the aged silver hair and green eyes that had lost their luster a long time ago. He stepped in, and Marth stood up from the chair he had been sitting in for the past twenty minutes.

"How is he, doctor?" asked Marth upon rising. "How is he?"

"Well, coming from a prince that is rather rude, wouldn't you say?" asked the doctor somewhat plaintively.

"I do not care if I am a prince," said Marth. "Tell me, how is he?"

"The king shall live," said the doctor.

The prince sighed in heavy relief.

"In fact, we noticed signs that he might gain consciousness soon," said the doctor.

Marth's face lit up upon hearing this.

"Really?" asked the prince.

"Yes," said the doctor.

"Yes!" said Marth, jumping and punching the air.

"It's a pity, too," added the doctor. "He'll probably try to cause more calamities afterwards."

The great joy that had settled in Marth's expression faded to nothing as he heard the doctor say this.

"What?" asked Marth.

"You heard me," responded the doctor. "You know what Link has said."

"Link?" asked Marth. "But hasn't he been revealed to be a mass murderer in the mansion?"

"He was high when he did that," said the doctor.

"So?" asked the prince, taking a defensive debate stance. "It was premeditated murder. He thought of it while not on a cocaine high. So that renders your argument worthless."

"Yes, but you can't deny his—" began the doctor.

"I do not deny his past," said Marth. "I wish people would stop making such a fuss about it! People can change!"

"That is true," said the doctor. "More often than not, though, they refuse."

"Then you do not know that man the way I do," said Marth. "I have been one of his few friends in the mansion, and he has made efforts to change!"

"How do you know?" asked the doctor.

"Because I know him better than any of you incompetent trend followers ever will," said Marth dangerously.

"Trend followers?" asked the doctor, not noticing the anger rising in Marth's voice.

"Yes," said Marth. "Link created a trend, and everybody fell for it! Why can you not see that?"

"Because Link was the former Hero of Time?" asked the doctor.

"That has nothing to do with it!" said Marth loudly. "If they do something wrong, they are wrong!"

"Not so," said the doctor. "You see, heroes are often known for their honesty, and even if he did he must have been right all of those other times, yes?"

Marth stood there for a moment, steam begging to be shot out of his ears.

"You try living around a man centered on keeping a title for your entire life!" shouted Marth dangerously.

"Why do you –?" asked the doctor before he was interrupted.

"My father was the worst ruler you could ask for!" shouted Marth. "I am not about to deny that Ganondorf made plays for power, but my father was worse than that man in that bed will ever be! My father was a hypocrite, a cheat, and a man who would murder his own people just to cast revenge on a prince! Ganondorf would never resort to such extremes! So you hold your tongue about things you do not know!"

A short silence followed, which garnered the attention of a crowd of ladies that had visibly gathered at the door.

"I know," said the doctor. "I know because I believe."

"Then you believe in a lie!" shouted Marth. "That man was dishonest about Ganondorf, and I am the only person here who is not afraid to say it! He may have been evil, but he would never stoop that low!"

"We'll see about that in the I-CU sometime," said the doctor as he approached the door.

When his hand lay on the knob, the doctor said but one word insultingly.

"_Prince…_"

The doctor twisted the knob and opened the door. He disappeared behind it afterwards.

The prince was unbelievably livid at the doctor's words; however, he dared not physically manifest them in front of him.

Thus, he punched the wall of the room, yelling out with each blow. After ten seconds of doing this, the prince looked up at the ceiling before collapsing on the floor. He then crawled to Ganondorf's bed, concealing tears of anger and of failure with Ganondorf's abdomen.

"I failed you…" said Marth. "Why won't they see it? Why…?"

He muttered these words into Ganondorf's stomach, and then he proceeded to cry there for a while more before uttering some more things.

"Come back… Please…

* * *

"_I need you…_" 

The phrase sounded distant, longing, and yet so close that he could grab it and inspect every little crevice in the phrase.

It was the only thing in the sea of emptiness that Ganondorf felt himself suspended in. He had figured a long time ago that it could not be death since Gerudo mythology told of a concept of heaven or hell, and Ganondorf lay in neither at the moment.

The phrase was the first thing he had heard in a while; the king had felt nothing for a very long time, and he found he could not move a muscle in his body when he tried to move. He also heard voices, all very distant, but these were usually so soft that in the space of familiar blackness they meant nothing to the king.

However, this time he was able to make out a phrase from one of the voices; this he identified as Marth's voice. He also felt sensation on his belly for the first time in what had felt like an eternity.

How long Ganondorf had stayed there was a mystery to him; ever since he had lost consciousness at the mansion after Link shot him three times, he had lost all track of time. He was unsure if it was because he found himself lapsing into periods of pure calm or because of the fact that there was no clock I this nothingness to tell him what time and what day it was.

But none of that mattered. Marth's voice could only mean one thing.

Marth was next to Ganondorf.

And the king knew that Marth needed him, judging from what he said.

Ganondorf was not sure he wanted to know the implications of Marth's statement towards him, but he was sure he would find out if he woke up as soon as possible.

Thus, he felt himself make an effort to move; however, he found this much easier than he had when he had felt nothing, for he did not feel like his blood had turned into stone.

Thus, Ganondorf's eyes fluttered open, his vision opening up to a haziness, and then to a clear image of a room with white walls and what looked to be medical equipment around.

He managed to lift his head to behold Marth at Ganondorf's bedside, his head on the king's abdomen and his back steadily quivering and occasionally rising as a sob escaped the prince. However the prince had gotten there, he was sure it was nothing pleasant.

Or maybe he had just lost hope of Ganondorf ever waking up.

The king knew he would not know if he pretended to wake up, but he knew that the first priority was to let Marth know that he was awake.

Thus, Ganondorf felt his hand voluntarily sneak out of the green covers that he found himself in and into the shiny sea that was the hair of the man he loved.

At first, the sobs stopped a little, but then Marth looked up, sapphire eyes glistening in the fluorescent lighting.

"Ganondorf?" he asked.

The king simply smiled.

"Am…" said Marth. "Am I dreaming?"

Ganondorf shook his head, feeling very much alive.

"Oh, Ganondorf!" Marth moaned as returned to Ganondorf's body, only this time the side of his face lay on the Gerudo's chest.

The king wrapped his arms around the prince's head closing his eyes and sighing as he did.

"Everything will be all right," said Ganondorf, surprised at how hoarse his voice was. "I am here. There is nothing to worry about."

Marth believed him.

After all, the strong willed Ganondorf that Marth knew had finally arisen from the depths of a long sleep that Marth was unable to stand.

And after this, Marth knew he would be able to pull through.


	32. Chapter 32: Character Studies Phase 3

Hello, children. 

I just found out I'm set to be doing _Carmina Burana_ in my senior year. This sets of a whole new bunch of rantings from me. 

I mean, it's great that I get to close my time in my school with a very popular piece for vocalists (it's a marked change from the festival where we did nothing with vocalists), but still, I don't think we have the forces for it. I mean, we have the piano department to steal pianists from (and at least it will keep this one pianist from complaining that they don't do anything), but I'm very insecure about how we're going to get the percussion needed. I mean, I know that pianists are sometimes stolen for wind ensemble, but I doubt that they will be relinquished for use in the full orchestra. Plus, that means I have to pray for two bassoonists and at least one extra oboist to come in from students. I prefer student-only performances, thank you very much. (Plus, it's not like the piece is performed _correctly_ by people anyway; there's only one good recording of the work (though thankfully, it's Orff-approved).) You know the rest. 

Anyways, now that my rant is over, let's get to the chapter, shall we? 

* * *

Chapter 32: Character Studies Phase 3

Ness sat in his room, hands on his head as he thought of what he was going to do with Bowser Jr.

The young boy was in love, with Nana, nonetheless. However, he never said it, and as a result he was always trying to make Nana's life easier.

But no, Bowser Jr. just had to get in the way. Every time he tried.

He had no idea what the young turtle had in him that thought he had the right to intrude on Nana's life so he could ruin Ness as often as he possibly could. He knew it had nothing to do with the fact that Bowser Jr. was a prince or whatever; however, he knew some ulterior motive was at hand.

Whatever it was, Bowser Jr. would be sure to pay for hindering Ness' love for Nana.

It was sad, actually; he tried to get Nana to stop crying, he tried to get Nana to look at the bright side of things, and he always tried to get her attention. But no, Bowser Jr. and Young Link had to get in the way because they could. Ness always wanted to hit them for doing that, but he would not go there unless they kept doing it to the point that the young psychic had had enough.

That point was approaching very quickly for the young psychic. And he would be the first one to throw a punch.

It was quite strange; not even the contemporary music he loved so much could take his mind off of the fact that he was being coldly pushed aside by everybody that he had come to know. It offered some solace, but it never fully managed to drive away the multitudes of bad thoughts that assailed the poor child as he sat listening to the strange chord configurations and whatever else the music threw at him.

Therefore, the child thought it a good idea to try to hang around his friends the next day to see if they would finally accept his advances for what they were.

He had some idea that it might not work, but he knew that he would never know for sure until he actually went and did it.

When he had made up his mind, he jumped down from the bed, walked up to the shelves that were in the dorm, grabbed a CD case, and popped it in to the CD player.

When he sat on the bed, the opening chord of _Pli__selon__Pli_ rang throughout the dorm with a decisive bang.

* * *

Samus' face hovered over the toilet bowl, eyes opaquely staring ahead of her as she stared at the clear water below. 

Then, she felt the bile run up her insides, and when it finally arrived at the bounty hunter's mouth she opened it and exhaled a brown fluid with little bits and pieces of what was her breakfast embedded into the fluid. All this, she did with a disgusting noise.

After spitting out the stray bits of vomit that remained in her mouth, she kneeled over the toilet bowl waiting for the next round to come.

As far as Samus was concerned, this was not supposed to be happening to her. She was a bounty hunter, after all; she always ate well, she exercised frequently, she watched her health carefully, and she made sure she kept away from the sinful urges that would threaten her health.

And yet, here she was, vomiting away.

She had thought of many things; she thought of a terrible stomach virus, typhoid fever, scarlet fever, everything. However, when she researched symptoms none of the results matched what she was going through.

It had been over a month since she had slept with Link, and pregnancy was something she would not consider. After all, in her mind bounty hunters were too barren to have children. She had missed her period two days ago, but she did not take this as a hint and figured it would come a few days later.

Samus had been feeling pretty unwell since then, but she was as prideful as ever. When she heard that Ganondorf came to in the ER, she scoffed at the fact that the smashers were making a big deal over a dishonorable cur who had managed to beat her during the tournament and walked away. She had also felt that while Link had lied to her about why he slept with her he was still right in trying to kill Ganondorf. She also said openly that he hoped that Ganondorf would die shortly after he woke up, despite the urgings from the other smashers to keep her mouth shut about it.

She had told nobody of her sickness; she was sure she could figure things out by herself.

Such was the height of her pride.

The next wave of vomit came, and then she felt nothing else.

She walked to the sink and washed her mouth out with some mouthwash afterwards.

Samus washed her face as she looked into the mirror. Her belly had begun to widen, and now she was stuck wearing her skintight suit all over the place; heck, she had to be placed on sick leave because she could not fit into her power suit the way she was. This might have contributed to her pride, as now she could marvel about how she was prettier than Zelda. The comment had gotten her slapped by the princess on several occasions and even by an angry Roy, but it never made a dent in her ego.

The bounty hunter felt good, yet at the same time horrible.

She opened the drawer, unsure of whether she should pick up the pregnancy test and perform it on herself right then and there.

She decided not to, however. She figured she was barren enough not to be able to produce children to anybody.

This led her to close the drawer and leave the bathroom, being sure to turn the fan on so the lingering smell of vomit would not get on anybody's nerves.

* * *

"But doctor, I don't see how it plays into his personality." 

"Leave it be, Red. I know it's true."

"I won't stand for this!"

"Well, tough. If you don't like it, I can give you a demotion any day."

"…"

"Exactly. Now run along and get me the syringe I need."

The doctor watched as his most loyal aide, Red, went along to the medical supply room to get something for a patient, brownish-red hair lusterless in the early evening hours.

He sighed as he thought about how unreasonable Red had been being lately. It was mostly referring to his bigotry towards Ganondorf, but how Red figured it was bigotry was beyond him.

After all, it was truth.

The doctor had learned to scientifically reason based on evidence set forth in front of him, and he had analyzed Link's sentences carefully and decided that Ganondorf was naturally a bad man.

He had actually used scientific justification to use this in his racism against a whole lot of races such that he found himself above all of them; he had heard a bunch of things from various people, and after walking where they walked and experiencing what they experienced, he had put together evidence to say that certain people deserved to be wiped from the face of the planet. How he had even become a doctor was a wonder to himself since he knew so many people to be evil, and yet something in him had told him that his race needed to live on and the other races did not.

Thus was the doctor as he moved to a table to lean on it. As of late, he had been suffering a bad case of the common cold that was getting to him quite suddenly. He was unable to shake the feeling that it was something more, but he dismissed it nonetheless.

A set of footsteps came up to him.

"The syringe is ready," said Red as he walked up, holding a syringe in his hand.

"Good," said the doctor. "Now we're ready to start the surgery."

The doctor faced to his left.

"Nurse!"


	33. Chapter 33: Departure

Hello, people. What's up?

We are screwed when _Carmina Burana _comes around; now, we have to work not only with three percussionists, but also with one bassoon, two oboes, and a so-so clarinet section. At least this year our string sections kick ass.

Oh well.

Anyways, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 33: Departure

"Tag! You're it!"

More laughter came from the children as they ran around the garden playing another customary game of tag.

They were being watched by Bowser again, though this time Peach sat next to the large turtle.

"I can see why you like to keep watch over the children as they play," said Peach as she observed the running of the children. "It feels enlivening."

"Yeah," said Bowser. "Children are a great thing to care for. They can be a pain in the butt sometimes, but they are usually so tender that you kind of overlook that. Me being a single parent for basically my son's entire life, it's hard, but it's still wonderful to have somebody other than a wife to care for."

"I wish I could have children," said Peach. "Only problem is, I'm not married yet."

"Well, if you are careful about your choice in husbands, you should be fine," said Bowser.

Peach looked back at the children, noticing that Bowser Jr. mostly went after Nana, tagging Young Link a little less.

"You know, I think that your son and Nana make a cute couple together," said Peach.

"W-what?" asked Bowser, cheeks going red.

The princess chuckled a little.

"You haven't noticed?" asked Peach. "Look at how often your son tags Young Link."

And the king watched and noted that Peach's observation was indeed correct.

"Oh," said Bowser. "Well, so long as they're happy with each other, I'm fine with it."

Peach nodded, continuing to watch the children.

Eventually, however, Peach felt a little disturbed.

When she looked to her right, she found Ness walking towards them.

Everybody else noticed, and the game of tag abruptly ended with Bowser Jr. close to his father and Nana and Young Link not too far ahead.

Eventually, Ness stopped in front of Bowser's leg.

"Hello, Ness," said Bowser.

"How come they're not playing tag with me?" asked Ness.

"Ness, we've gone over this already," said Bowser with a sigh. "If you can't settle down, I have to keep you out."

"Settle down?" asked Ness. "But I'm perfectly normal!"

"Well, you seem to act otherwise," said Bowser.

"You've been told this, haven't you?" asked Ness.

"Yes," said Bowser. "But I've also—!"

"Damn it!" shouted Ness, turning around and pointing at Bowser Jr. "This is all your fault! Why do you have to take everything away from me?"

"Take things away from you?" asked Peach. "Now, now, Ness, I am sure that—"

"You took away my trust!" shouted Ness. "I try to be sociable, and yet you do everything you can to get rid of it!"

"Sociable?" asked Young Link. "So being a cold, insensitive person is your idea of being sociable?"

"See?" asked Ness. "He's turning you all away from me! You don't get it, do you?"

"Ness, think for a minute!" shouted Bowser Jr. "Stop being unreasonable! You're blowing simple bits of advice way out of proportion such that you can feel good about yourself. Shut up and think!"

"No, YOU need to think!" shouted Ness. "You're taking everything away from me, and nothing I can do can stop it!"

"Ness, stop it!" shouted Nana. "You don't understand yourself!"

"You even turned _her_ away from me!" shouted Ness. "Is this what I get for trying to love somebody around here?"

"Love?" asked Bowser Jr. "What's that got to do with it?"

"I love Nana!" shouted Ness. "Isn't it obvious?"

"Well, maybe if you actually said something I would open up," said Nana. "But no, you keep on being a whining, complaining idiot!"

"Nana!" said Bowser sternly.

By then, though, the damage had been done, and Ness stood there, anger intensifying in his expression. The young psychic boy turned to Bowser Jr.

Then, Ness' fist sailed straight at the younger turtle's face.

"Ness!" shouted Peach. "Control yourself!"

"He takes everything away from me!" shouted Ness, turning to face the princess. "How can you be so cold?"

"How can _you_ be so cold?" asked Bowser. "You tell Nana not to mourn Popo! What do you expect us to do when loved ones die?"

The young turtle then launched himself at Ness, and a series of little hits followed from both ends.

"Boys, boys!" shouted Bowser. "Stop it!"

They did not stop, however. Peach ran out of the garden to get Matthew as the fisticuffs raged on.

"Ness! Bowser Jr.! Stop it!" shouted Young Link, physically trying to get the two children apart as nana cried a little ways away.

The noises of the fight and attempts to break it up had begun to attract a crowd, and eventually the crowd had to be dispersed as Matthew made his way through the crowd.

"Silence!" shouted the head of the tournament.

Instantly, Matthew's voice worked like a charm.

"He has a lot to say!" shouted Young Link, his finger directing itself at Ness.

"I will see you both in my office," said Matthew. "Now. Get up, and let us settle this in a civil manner."

The two children obeyed, terrified of the man's voice.

Nana stood up and walked by Young Link, where she then burst into a fit of sobbing on his shoulder.

"It's not fair!" shouted Nana. "It's not fair!"

"Why?" asked Young Link.

"Because knowing how Matthew is, they'll both be going home!" shouted Nana. "And it's all my fault!"

Young Link was surprised for a second, but then she hugged Nana comfortingly.

"Aw, don't worry about it," said the young boy as he comforted the girl. "You weren't the cause of all this. Don't worry about it, okay?"

Nana looked at Young Link and noded.

* * *

Ness glared angrily at the gate as he walked to the bus that was to take him back to Onett. 

It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair at all.

Bowser Jr. was also being sent home, but he got the private transportation and the goodbyes where Ness got nothing.

When they were in the office, they were both ordered to be sent home. They both pleaded their case on equal terms, but Matthew said his decision was final; it would not be fair to Roy for some people to be evicted from the mansion for fighting, and he would stick by it at the end.

And now, he was boarding the bus that would take him to Onett. A small crowd consisting of Peach, Bowser, the other children, Matthew, and a few others stood outside of the gate watching him leave.

The boy turned around before continuing farther on the walkway. He faced the smashers and raised his fist into the air.

"I'm not going to forget this!" shouted Ness. "I'm going to get you for this! I swear!"

The boy turned around and slowly approached the bus, and he stepped on it and it drove away. Ness still glared out the window to tell the smashers not to mess with him if he decided to come back.

After a few minutes of waiting, the private transport that Bowser had hired for his son arrived.

"Well, there we are," said Bowser.

"It's not fair!" shouted Bowser Jr. "It's not fair!"

"Now, now," said Bowser. "You aren't in any trouble with me, okay? Now, do what I say and go in the car."

"But dad, I don't want to be alone in the castle!" shouted Bowser Jr. "I like it here!"

"I know you like it here," said Bowser, kneeling down to his son's level and patting his head. "But sometimes you have to do something you don't want to do. I've had to do it several times during my reign, and do I regret them? Yes. But I pulled through."

"So should I?" asked Bowser Jr.

"Yes," said Bowser.

The two looked at each other in silence.

"Okay," said the boy.

He picked up his bags and walked to the car.

As he walked, Nana watched in silence, her eyes watering.

Finally, when Bowser Jr. was halfway across the pathway to the car, Nana was unable to stand it.

She let out a short cry, and she ran towards Bowser Jr. as the koopa turned around.

"No!" yelled the girl as she ran to the turtle. "Don't leave me!"

Nana collided into Bowser Jr. at this point, Nana jumping on Bowser Jr. The turtle instinctively wrapped her arms around her as the young girl cried into his shoulder.

"Don't leave me!" shouted Nana. "I don't wanna lose you! Don't go in there! You're my best friend, and I don't want to lose you after losing Popo!"

The koopa patted Nana's back.

"There, there, Nana," said Bowser Jr. "Don't cry."

"But it's not fair!" cried Nana. "It's not fair!"

"Please, Nana," said Bowser Jr. "Papa always tells me that if you care for somebody very much, they never truly leave you. I'll write as often as I can. How's that?"

Nana simply nodded as she continued to cry.

"Promise me you will," said Nana.

"I promise," said the turtle, patting Nana's back and finally ending the embrace.

"Thank you…" said Nana.

Bowser Jr. walked forward, but noticed that Nana's hand was still clasped with his, her eyes glistening with the light of the rising sun.

They remained like this for a while, Nana gazing into the turtle's eyes before Bowser Jr. finally let go of Nana's hand.

He walked to the car and entered it, leaving Nana to look at the car as it finally departed, carrying Nana's best friend to his home.


	34. Chapter 34: Build Up

Hello again. How are you on this Labor Day weekend?

Not much is going on, except now I have to go on writing college essays and the like. You know where that leads, right? RIGHT?

Anyways, you know the rest. Here's the chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 34: Build Up 

Samus lifted the pregnancy test results up to the level of her eyes.

The bounty hunter did not want to do this, but she had finally run through everything she was able to think of. Thus, she turned to the source she least expected for a little bit of information regarding what was happening to her.

Thus, she had acquired a set of pregnancy tests from Zelda for her own use. The procedure had been awkward, but the bounty hunter finally had some inkling that she knew what she was doing.

She continued with it anyway.

Samus had to perform it in the women's restroom on that floor, and she had decided to shoo everybody out, so Peach's yelping was heard outside as the bounty hunter was at work. She had just put her blue jumpsuit back on; she had been getting to large for her power suit to function properly and she had to be naked for the pregnancy test.

She took out a small little paper up to the level of her eyes and read it up to the part that talked about the results.

The bounty hunter got annoyed as she read on.

_Damn it all,_ thought Samus. _Give me the damn color coding!_

Samus' eyes finally laid to rest on the colors. She looked at the pregnancy test once before finding the corresponding caption underneath the color as it appeared.

Samus' expression immediately heightened, and she nearly dropped the pregnancy test.

She looked at the test itself once more, then back at the paper, before dropping both and bringing her hands up to her face.

"No…" said Samus. "This isn't how it's supposed to be!"

She banged on the wall and shouted the same word over and over again, not caring to be heard.

The door opened and Peach poked her head in.

"What's the matter?" asked the princess.

"This isn't right!" shouted Samus. "Why?"

Peach decided not to say anything, but instead entered as Samus slumped on the floor. The amputee walked over to Samus and knelt next to her.

"Why…?" asked Samus under her breath.

"Why what?" asked Peach, wrapping her arm around Samus.

The bounty hunter immediately brushed the arm away with a very brusque gesture and stood up.

"Don't talk to me!" shouted Samus. "A princess doesn't associate with a slut!"

Samus stormed out of the room, tears in her eyes and leaving a very bewildered Peach to wonder what had happened for Samus to be so pissed off.

The princess' gaze then turned to the discarded pregnancy test on the floor. She crawled over there, and when she got there she picked up the paper and flipped the pregnancy test over to the side that revealed what the results were.

When she compared the color of the paper to that of the indicators for the results of the pregnancy test, Peach was rather shocked to learn that Samus was pregnant the entire time.

* * *

Ganondorf sat back in his bed, aided by Marth and Red, one of the aides at the hospital. 

"Is there anything else I can do for you two before I leave?" asked Red.

"No," said Ganondorf. "What you just did was enough. It's great to be able to walk on my feet again."

"I'm glad to be of help," said Red. "Anything I can get you two while you wait for dinner?"

"No," said Marth. "Thanks for asking though."

"No problem," said Red. He nodded sincerely to the two people as the aide stepped out.

Marth sat in the chair once Ganondorf's back rested on the railing behind the bed.

"So, how does it feel to actually do things normal people would do?" asked Marth.

"It feels quite good, actually," said Ganondorf. "It will take me forever to get over that nothingness I was in."

"I can see why it got annoying," said Marth. "Did anybody care to tell you what happened to people while you were out?"

"Not really," said Ganondorf. "The last time Bowser visited he was kind enough to fill me in on the fact that Mario returned, grieving his brother in quite the dramatic way. He also told me that he and Peach finally made up peacefully. I wonder what happened to Link…"

"He's set to die by order of government," said Marth. "He was found guilty of first degree murder and things like that. He actually would have taken you too, if not for a small little accident I ran into while watching the trial…"

"Really?" asked Ganondorf. "What happened?"

"Well, I found a video camera in my own room," said the prince. "Apparently, it caught some rather… revealing… footage for a long time without my noticing it at all. I took it to the trial, some things were said over it, Samus had an outburst, and other things happened. Zelda finally broke up with Link after that, as Link had apparently been in bed with Samus to try to create a reason that he would kill you."

"I see," said Ganondorf. "Did Zelda find anybody new to be with?"

"Roy," said Marth. "The two of them are getting along very well right now."

"I suppose it is to be expected," said Ganondorf. "Roy does not seem like a bad man for Zelda. I hope he can live up to the challenge of making Zelda love him."

"He's certainly up to it," said Marth. "I think they will be a good couple."

"I certainly hope so," said Ganondorf. "Zelda should not be with a man who is similar to how Link was in the end."

At this moment, Red entered with a cart loaded with trays of food for the ICU patients.

"Okay, guys," said Red as he entered, closing the door behind him. "Here's your dinner!"

The aide brought forward two trays of food, and set them both on the laps of the two men.

"Thanks, Red," said Marth.

"No problem, you guys," said the aide. "I'll see you guys later."

The king nodded as the aide left the room.

On the other side of the door, Red remained, listening to Marth and Ganondorf's conversation from a distance. His mind tuned to that only as everything else seemed to fade.

Once the aide finally left the spot to deliver the dinners of the other patients at the ICU, he shook his head in sadness.

How could the head doctor around there be so stupid? The doctor was always cursing Ganondorf behind the king's back and continuing Link's legacy of what was now generally accepted as lies and slander. The aide continued walking forward as he pondered on this question.

Red really wanted to jump into the room and inform Marth and Ganondorf about all of the things that the doctor had said, but he wondered if it was not right to do so if he would hurt somebody's feelings. The aide always erred on the side of not telling, but he still wondered if it was right by refusing Ganondorf the right to be informed.

Red continued to walk, figuring he would work out the verses in the comfort of his home.

* * *

Matthew sat in his office, absent-mindedly thumbing through a volume that would have been on the shelf had he not taken it off of there. 

The words failed to register into Matthew's mind; he simply glanced at the pages, mimicking a much-thought-of motion and yet not putting anything into it.

The head of the tournament had figured out why he was grieving so much; however, he chose to keep it to himself contrary to what he promised Fox and Falco. He knew it was ridiculous, and he would keep it from them for this reason.

Still, something in his ego told him that it was not really correct to hide it from everybody; he had seen Marth's behavior for a while go on a decline, but then again Matthew was not sure whom he could trust with his secret.

However, hiding it seemed to heighten his grief over Cornelia and Luigi. He knew he should have been over both deaths a while after the funeral, and yet he still found himself incessantly thinking of it. When he turned to Bowser to help, he said to try not to think of Cornelia and Luigi.

Matthew felt that this was easier said than done; he had no real idea where to start with getting over them, and yet he knew he had to do it. Why it was not happening, he knew, and yet his keeping it secret seemed to make it worse.

Thus, he mulled over it over the words of one of the books that lay unused on the shelves. He had not reached a major conclusion as to what to do.

He sat at the desk, still thinking of what to do, wasting the hours by staring into something he would not otherwise have opened.


	35. Chapter 35: War Requiem

So sorry, everybody! I'm so caught up in a bunch of other things that I forgot to update! 

Anyways, you know the rest. Some stuff happens where I resolve two subplots. Now, the only thing left to resolve is the main plot. I can get to that next chapter, and then, epilogue. 

In other words, this fic is about to end soon! Oh no! 

Don't worry about it, though! I have plans for a spin-off of sorts; I guess you all wonder what's going on with Link, eh? Well, he gets sent to jail, and stuff happens that is to be retold in my current project-in-conception, _Paranoia_. Basically put, expect Link to go through all kinds of crap in that. I'll go into details once I get there. 

But for now, the second to last true chapter of Symphonische Metamorphosen. Enjoy! 

* * *

Chapter 35: War Requiem

A second knock emanated from the other side of the doorway.

"Hey!" shouted Falco's voice from across the door. "Open up! You've been in here fo' days and ya haven't said anythin' to either me or Fox! Get out and talk a little, will ya?"

Matthew simply tucked his head into his arms more. The former hand had been deprived of sleep, and he was not about to let Falco wake him up.

A third series of knocks came from the door.

With a begrudging sigh, Matthew stood up and opened the door to find the birdman standing in front of him.

"Damn it, man," said Falco. "Why didn't ya open up like I asked ya?"

"I need sleep," said Matthew.

"I don't care right now," said Falco. "What's up wit' the silence lately?"

"I'm still thinking," Matthew lied.

"Bullshit," said Falco as he stepped into the office. "You've had plenty o' time to think."

"I'm still lost," said Matthew, eyes diverting away from Falco as the anthropomorphic bird paced around the office.

"Well, get yourself unlost," said Falco.

"But I can't," said Matthew. "I can't!"

"Then I think that you're lyin' to me," said Falco. "Ya can tell me! I don't mind a bit what ya think!"

"But I…" said Matthew.

"It ain't like I'm gonna tell anybody other than Fox," said Falco. "Come on!"

"But it's stupid!" said Matthew.

"So what if it's stupid?" asked Falco. "It's not like anybody ain't got the right to hear it."

"And you'd never understand," said Matthew. "I don't think any ruffian would understand."

Falco opened his mouth to speak, but anger took over as he opened it, and it continued on its way.

"Who are you calling a ruffian?" asked Falco. "Me?"

"Yes!" shouted Matthew. "You, with the New York street accent!"

"Shut up!" shouted Falco. "My father left me on the side of the street, I had to pickpocket my way through life for six years! Did that stop Fox from befriending me and finding me a home? Hell no! So you shut your trap before I mess ya up!"

"I don't care!" shouted Matthew. "You haven't had to deal with not having the chance to tell the people you cared about that they were important to you!"

Matthew stopped after saying this, and stepped back in shock that he had apparently let his secret fly.

Falco nodded and smiled a little as his hands placed themselves on his hips.

"Now we're gettin' somewhere," said Falco.

"Quiet!" shouted Matthew.

"What?" asked Falco. "I can't be down to earth around here?"

"You don't understand!" shouted Matthew. "I had a bunch of things I never told Cornelia, and now she'll never know!"

Falco's eyes widened slightly as Matthew huffed and puffed where he stood.

"Cornelia was part of me!" shouted Matthew, tears beginning to stream down his face. "She was there for me through everything that I've ever suffered in my life! I've always had her to help me through all of the troubles of life, and it was she whom I would turn to whenever I had a problem! Who do you think I have now! Nobody! And now she'll never know that she meant so much to me! So get out and leave me the fuck alone!"

Matthew slouched against the wall and placed his hand on his face as the tears came down without abandon.

Falco stood there, bewildered by what Matthew had said.

The bird then walked up to Matthew and wrapped his arms around him comfortingly.

The head of the tournament was at first surprised, but he wrapped his own arms around Falco's form and cried into his shoulder.

"There, there," said Falco. "I'm here. I'll listen to what you say."

They stood in this position for a little more time before Falco patted Matthew.

"I'll take ya to the graveyard later today," said Falco. "So ya can tell her she was important to ya. How's that?"

The head of the tournament nodded as they parted.

Falco nodded and walked out of the door.

"I'll see you later then," said Matthew.

The bird turned around, nodded to Matthew, and continued on his way.

* * *

_I'm a slut…_

This commanding phrase ran itself in Samus' head for the umpteenth time that day as she sat on her bed wondering what to do.

She had not bothered to do her hair that morning, so a mess of blonde strands stood on top of her head as she sat on the bed. Her skin-tight suit lay on the ground next to her bed as it had lain discarded when she woke up. She froze herself in her room, as if wishing for death to come quickly.

She was not invincible. She had never thought this would cross her mind, but it finally did. Samus would speak of her accomplishments with the same amount of disdain as the amount that she retold with pride running in her system.

But it was the fact that she had to pay the ultimate price for it that killed her; she never knew she would get a child from anybody (and especially from a man she did not love). Therefore, she was destroyed inside. Her old self lay tattered inside of her mind.

And yet, there was no new self to occupy the space that was left vacant in Samus' mind. She had no idea how to start over, and she had no idea where to begin in her new life.

Therefore, the bounty hunter could be considered a mess.

And thus, she sat on the bed, trying to think clearly for once in between bouts of throwing sheets of loose-leaf paper around the dorm.

But the clear thoughts never came. And she kept standing up and tearing the sheets of paper in her hands as she ran around screaming and throwing the said sheets of paper this way and that.

And just then, the papers were lying scattered all around her after having freshly settled on the floor. Nothing had come to her yet. Nothing.

Suddenly, a word appeared in her mind. She had never given much thought to it, but she realized then it would give her what she wanted; rest, peace, and a sense of her pride restored to her.

She stood up and did her hair with a little water with the brush that lay on the bedside table.

As she stood in front of the mirror, though, her expression fell; she wondered if she was doing the right thing at all.

At this, her expression fell and she fell into her old self-doubt again. However, she eventually perked up and looked into the mirror.

After doing her hair, she slipped into her zero suit.

* * *

Matthew knelt in front of the grave of his departed sister, the wind playing games with his brown hair as he knelt in front of it. 

Falco stood off to the side, watching Matthew as he whispered small words to Cornelia's spirit. The avian wondered if Cornelia was actually hearing anything that Matthew said, but he knew more than anybody that Matthew really needed to get his feelings out to something. Therefore, he knew that he had done the right thing.

The head of the tournament stared forwards after having said a long statement to Cornelia, and he held back as many tears as he could as he placed a bouquet of roses that were laying in his hands the entire time on the ground in front of Cornelia's tombstone. He then looked at the top of the tombstone.

"I remember that there was a lullaby that you always wanted me to sing when dad died," whispered Matthew. "You sleep now, but not in peace. Let me just say one last thing…"

The head of the tournament swallowed, eyes watering as he opened his mouth.

"_Day is done__Gone the sun,__From the lake, from the hills, from the sky.__All is well, safely rest__God is nigh._"

The tears began to flow as he sang the silent syllables, the wind blowing a few pedals away from the roses.

Finally, when he finished, he knelt there for a while. He knelt, letting the tears flow freely so that Cornelia could see them. He cried until he felt that his tear ducts were devoid of anything left to cry, and this took him a long time to approach.

When he had finished letting the tears out, Matthew stood and turned to Falco.

"Ya ready?" asked Falco.

"Yes," said Matthew.

"Let's go then," said the avian.

He walked to the Arwing that was parked in the lot, with Matthew following closely behind.

* * *

A white sedan rode up to the gates of the mansion, and access to the driveway was achieved by it as it drove to the steps. The white paint job shone brilliantly against the heat of the afternoon sun. 

Zelda and Roy emerged from the passenger and driver's seats of the sedan, and Roy walked to Zelda and took her hand.

"So how was it tonight?" asked Roy.

"Oh, that was a lot of fun!" said Zelda. "I'd like to do things like that again!"

Roy had taken Zelda and his co-workers to a rather rowdy bar in the southern part of downtown Smash City where the dancing was fast and the beverages were mild. They had arrived in the middle of the day's dance hour, and, needless to say, Zelda had gotten Roy and herself into one dance too many, and Zelda came out of it wishing for a lot more than what she had been given.

"Yeah," said Roy. "That was a lot of fun. I'd be glad to take you again sometime."

"Oh, would you?" asked Zelda as the two of them walked up the marble steps.

"Of course," said Roy. "So I'll see you Friday at six?"

"Friday at six," said Zelda. "Got it!"

As they approached the doors, they opened seemingly by themselves. Out walked Samus with her face somewhat under-nourished in terms of make-up and with sapphire eyes that sparkled with an odd mix of sadness and happiness.

"Hey, Samus!" said Roy. "Haven't heard from you in a while."

"Oh," said Samus, just noticing the prince and princess standing in front of her. "Sorry about that. Can you take me somewhere?"

"Samus, you're not planning on—" began Zelda.

"Don't worry about it, dear," said Roy. "I'll make sure I don't get tempted. But sure, I'll take you somewhere. Where to?"

Samus stood there, seemingly trying to muster up the courage to tell them as she walked forward and faced the distance.

Finally, the bounty hunter opened her mouth.

"The abortion clinic."

"The abortion clinic?" asked Zelda. "Samus, why would you need that?"

"Because I'm pregnant with a child I don't want," said Samus. "I'm surprised nobody told you."

"What do you mean, 'with a child you don't want?'" asked Roy. "I'm pretty sure that everybody wants a child they can call their—"

"It's Link's child, okay?" said Samus. "I don't want it!"

"But why the abortion clinic?" asked Zelda.

"I need it to be taken away!" said the bounty hunter. "I don't want it!"

"Well, you can give it away for adoption," said Roy.

"Who would take a baby of a slut?" asked Samus.

The princess' eyes widened as this sentence came out of Samus' mouth.

"What do you mean, baby of a slut?" asked Zelda.

"Because that's what I am!" shouted the bounty hunter, finally losing her last holds on her sanity as she lurched forward, tears coming from her eyes.

"Samus, who told you—?" asked Roy.

"I wasn't supposed to get pregnant!" shouted Samus. "You don't get it at all! Bounty hunters don't get pregnant by people that they don't love! I hate that man! I hate him! I wish he would die for making me what I am and making me unable to break the grasp of this… thing on me!"

"Hey!" shouted Zelda as she grabbed Samus' shoulders and shook her a little. "Settle down! You are not a slut, understand?"

"No!" shouted Samus. "You don't get it! You don't know what it's like to feel the anger of a thousand people on you! Especially you!"

"Me?" asked Zelda. "Why should I be angry?"

"Because I slept with the man you loved!" shouted Samus. "You hate both of us now, and you'll probably spread the word so nobody would take the baby! Who will do it, then?"

"I will!" shouted Zelda.

A silence pervaded the outside of the mansion afterwards as Samus looked at Zelda with a bewildered expression on her face.

"Zelda, why?" she asked.

"I should be angry at you," said Zelda. "I really should. But I'm not. The last time I ever saw that man, he told me that he needed attention, and I assume he used all of us to some extent, especially you. I cannot bring myself to be angry at you over that. Therefore, I have no enmity towards you.

"And I should hate Link enough to not want to take in his children. But I don't. Why? He did some terrible things, but in the end, he admitted that what he did was wrong. I will never forgive him for what he did, but he knew that he was wrong, and for me, that is the only reason why I still have some respect left for him.

"You are not a slut, Samus. You never will be."

The bounty hunter and the prince both looked at the princess as she looked at Samus in the eye, a fierce determination to prove to Samus that she was not what she branded herself burning in her eyes.

And then, Samus collapsed on Zelda's shoulder, crying for as long as she could muster tears.

The princess instinctively wrapped her arms around the bounty hunter comfortingly, and Roy came forward and patted Samus' hair.


	36. Chapter 36: Ave Formosissima

Hello everybody! You know who's here. 

We sightread _Carmina Burana_ in school yesterday. All of a sudden, I can't wait to play it. I mean, we do need to get the whole percussion/piano thing sorted out, but that's getting done, and besides, the sightreading didn't go too badly. Nobody got the time signatures (which I kind of expected since Orff does the time signatures of _Carmina Burana_ in a way that a lot of people wouldn't understand just by looking at it), but other than that we did fine. 

And this is the last real chapter of SM! From here, you can basically tell how it ends, but to bring things full circle I'm going to go over what happens to each character in the epilogue. All of a sudden, it's getting exciting as we approach the end. 

The last music reference appears here; this time, the majestic chorale of "Ave Formosissima" from _Carmina Burana_ comes to mind. I thought that the chorale of that would fit the subject matter of what happens in the later half of the chapter as a sort of triumphant moment for people. In general, think of this as the great triumphant moment of the main plot. 

So you know the rest. Here you are, and I'll get to the epilogue ASAP so the suspense isn't murderous. 

* * *

Chapter 36: Ave Formosissima

Red was busy wheeling trays this way and that in the ICU as pleasant thoughts filled his head.

The day had come for Ganondorf to leave the ICU, and the aide was very sure that it would be a good thing for everybody. The doctor's bickering had begun to be annoying in the office, and the worst part of it was that Ganondorf never heard it. The aide would make it a point to visit Ganondorf's room for the last time the king would be in there.

Red was very happy for the king, actually; in his time in the ICU, he had managed to recover fully, something that many people had considered would make Ganondorf the luckiest man on the face of the earth. The aide wondered if there was something more to it than a simple determination to live, but the aide usually let it rest.

He eventually came upon Ganondorf's room, and he opened the door to deliver the last meal that Ganondorf would ever eat in the ICU.

"Hey, Red," said Marth's voice cheerily as the aide entered the room. "I guess this is the last time we see each other before we dart out of the ICU, yes?"

"Yes," said Red as he entered and placed the tray on the table over in the corner. "So you plan on returning to the mansion?"

"Yes," said Ganondorf, who was sitting on the edge of the bed. "We need to go back to the tournament."

"The tournament?" asked Red. "I don't think you should go back for that. I hear it's going to be cancelled soon."

"Cancelled?" asked Marth as he leaned back in his chair and wore a surprised expression on his face. "Why?"

"Apparently, nobody cared to tell you," said Red. "Apparently, this is what happened; Roy got into a fight and was told to leave, Mario got into a fight and left, and Link went on his rampage that got himself and three others out automatically. They can't go on with the tournament; too many people are winning by default."

"Really?" asked Ganondorf.

"Yes," said Red. "People are disappointed, but he promised a larger tournament next year."

"That would be wonderful!" said Marth. "Are we in?"

"I do not know," said Red as he grabbed the cart. "Word on the street is he's not sending out acceptance letters until—"

"Red, you cannot prove such a claim."

All three of them stared at the doorway, and a nervous expression appeared on Red's face as the doctor entered the room.

"Are you sure about that?" asked Ganondorf. "I would think it would make sense, actually."

"Sense, to a brute like you," said the doctor.

"Brute?" asked Red.

"Yes," said the doctor. "Brute. One of the words used by Link to describe—"

"Link?" asked Marth. "He was proven to be a liar! Why do you still say good things about him?"

"My dear boy, you can learn that people can be turned against you by the most cunning of minds," said the doctor as his glance fell first on Red, and then on Ganondorf.

"What do you mean?" asked Red. "I've always been against your racism! Ganondorf has nothing to do with it!"

"This is about the fact that I practice wizardry," said Ganondorf.

"Exactly," said the doctor. "He even admits it."

"Admits what?" asked Ganondorf. "Just because I use wizardry does not mean I use it on random people to turn friends into enemies! I know better than that."

"No, you don't," said the doctor. "Which is why you are a brute. You like to turn people against others, and then you break them when the connection is weakest. Quite the tactic, isn't it?"

"Stop it!" shouted Red. "I—!"

"Quiet!" said the doctor authoritatively, pointing his finger at Red as he said it. "I am only talking to a black man who deserves nothing better than to rot on the side of the streets with the human feces that gather there every day! Not to an unintelligent hospital aide who has the job only for some whore he keeps in his house!"

The room went silent at this comment. Marth looked forward cooly, with Ganondorf and Red both looking very surprised.

"Black man?" asked Ganondorf.

"Quiet, you!" said the doctor. "You made a kingdom go into chaos, so who is to say you cannot cause a section of a hospital to enter a state of chaos?"

"But I—!" began the king.

"Don't you 'but' me, you insensible bastard!" said the doctor. "I have always thought this, and yet I have never voiced it! You were an evil man, you are an evil man, and you shall eternally be an evil man!"

By this time, the attention of the entire faculty on the floor had been achieved, and this was when the doctor chose to collect files that he had left on the trolley.

Ganondorf and Red were unable to defend themselves, and accordingly they looked at the door, staring.

However, Marth's expression eventually showed signs of rage, to the point that one of the other aides noticed that the prince's hands had curled into fists.

Before anything else could have been said and before the doctor could walk out of the door, the prince let out an angry yell as he lunged at the doctor. Unable to retaliate, the doctor was tackled to the floor, files sliding all over the floor of the room as Marth let loose a fist to the doctor's face.

"You sad excuse for a living being!" shouted Marth. "You are too afraid of change to admit that maybe you are wrong!"

The faculty cheered as the prince let loose another fist to the doctor's face. Red's expression had changed from a shocked one to an expression of great jollity.

"He has tried to change!" yelled the prince over the doctor, never giving him the chance to retaliate. "But dolts like you keep impeding his progress! So shut up, and learn—" and here, Marth delivered another punch to the doctor's face "— to keep your mouth shut about things you do not know!"

Marth then stood up, picked the doctor up by the collar, and then yelled as his hand flew forwards and sent the doctor flying straight through the door, wooden splinters flying everywhere as the doctor fell into the corridor and right up against the door. The prince stepped out of the room shortly after, slamming the already broken door behind him and causing more splinters to fall from what remained of the door.

"Go on!" shouted Marth. "Go home to your mother! Go home to her, and tell her that you need to be put back in school because you cannot learn to change your mind about things! Go!"

Without hesitation, the intimidated doctor hurriedly stood up, and amidst the applause of the faculty directed at Marth, the doctor ran to the staircase and disappeared behind the white door.

Back in the room, Red had begun to applaud along with the rest of the faculty.

"Man, he deserved it!" shouted Red from inside of the room.

Then, the aide turned to look at Ganondorf with a smile on his face.

"What do you say, Ganondorf?" asked the aide.

The king did not reply, an expression resting on his face that had dispelled the fright he had experienced earlier.

"Ganondorf?" asked Red.

A solitary tear travelled down the king's cheek as Red realized that Marth's actions had left an amazing impact on Ganondorf's mind.

The aide had no idea that the implications were much larger than what he thought…

* * *

Marth entered his room, closing the door behind him as he promptly took a carrying case out from under the bed and threw some of his books inside. 

Ganondorf's move back to his dorm had been welcomed by most of the smashers in the tournament. Some of them had not gone to see him due to prejudice, but for the most part the smashers were welcoming.

Afterwards, they were ushered into the meeting room, where the official announcement that the tournament had been cancelled was given. However, he also said that a tournament would be organized for the next year, so to most people it was really not that bad. Some had received their invitation letters right away and had told the hand that they were very interested; however, he told some he would wait on certain conditions to send them their invitation letters.

The hand had established a timeline for the smashers to leave; by the end of the week, everybody needed to have packed their things and left the mansion. Some of the smashers had already left in the two days that had passed since Ganondorf had arrived back in the mansion; Nana had left to Bowser's castle to see Bowser Jr., Samus rented out an apartment in Smash City and moved there to wait for the baby that she was bearing, and Zelda and Roy had returned to Hyrule. However, a majority of the smashers had not left, so Marth hoped to say farewell to all of them.

As these thoughts swam by the prince's head, he heard a knocking on his door.

"Come in!" said the prince as he grabbed a spare cape and laid it in the carrier.

The door creaked open, and Ganondorf stood in the doorway, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Oh, hello Ganondorf!" said Marth. "I was wondering; where are you going to go?"

"I haven't the slightest idea," said Ganondorf as he walked in. "That is not what I came in here for, though."

"Really?" asked Marth. "What is it, then?"

"Why did you stand up for me when the doctor put me down so badly?" asked Ganondorf.

The prince stopped packing and turned to face the king.

"Because I cannot abandon a friend in need," said Marth. "I stood up for you because it was right."

"But your actions…" said Ganondorf. "They were more… brusque than what I am accustomed to you doing."

"You do not understand, Ganondorf," said Marth as he walked up to the king. "A lot of insults went your way when you were out in a coma; all of the rage at them built up into the doctor, and—"

"And you also told him to go home to his mother," said Ganondorf. "That is very strong, and it is usually reserved only for the bitterest of enemies, is it not?"

Marth was speechless after this, and he just looked forward at the king.

"There is something you are not telling me here," said Ganondorf. "I can tell."

"A-are you implying something?" asked Marth as he stuttered a little.

"Yes," said Ganondorf. "You can tell me! I listened to you in your darkest hour!"

Marth brought his finger to his lips, realizing that the king was correct in this respect. Therefore, the prince realized that Ganondorf had the right to know.

"Well?" asked the king. "What is—?"

The king was unable to ask the rest of it, for as soon as the first two words left his lips Marth lunged forward and Ganondorf was unable to react before he felt the prince press his lips against Ganondorf's.

This shocked Ganondorf to an incomprehensive level such that despite the fact that he loved Marth back the king was unable to kiss the prince back.

Finally, the prince's lips separated from the king's, and the prince realized with a disgusted look what he had done.

Afterwards, the prince promptly turned around, fingers on his temples.

"Oh no…" said Marth, guilt ringing in his voice. "What have I done?"

"Marth…" said Ganondorf. "You… love me…?"

"Yes…" sighed Marth. "But now I can never have it. I think you will never want to talk to me again. So go. Go and leave me alone."

Ganondorf stood there, shock in his face as he heard the prince shed a few tears of loss.

Then, the king approached the prince, an expression of understanding and care etched on his face as he turned the prince around.

"Marth…" said Ganondorf.

And then, the king rested his lips on those of the prince as he pulled Marth into a tight embrace.

Marth stopped crying, also shocked at what was going on.

Still, the prince found the strength to kiss the king back.

The two of them held this embrace for what felt like an eternity, and when they finally parted, Ganondorf could not help but stare into Marth's princely sapphire eyes.

"You are beautiful…" commented Ganondorf as his hand sifted through the prince's ocean-colored hair.

"Nobody has ever told me that," said Marth. "So you love me too?"

"That was what my conflict was about…" said Ganondorf. "But none of that matters. We have each other now, and that is all that matters."

"Indeed," said Marth as he hugged himself into the king's muscled body. "So have you thought about where you intend to go?"

Ganondorf wrapped his arms tighter around Marth.

"I shall go where you go," said Ganondorf. "I cannot live without you."

The prince nodded, staring into Ganondorf's eyes.

"Neither can I," said Marth. "I love you, Ganondorf…"

The king simply brought his face close to Marth's.

"I love you too," said the king.

Lips locked again as the king and the prince became the same entity, the two of them savoring the moment that they were in as the seconds ticked by in an eternal march towards nothing in particular.


	37. Epilogue

Hello, people.

God, just typing this A/N is making my heart race. It's so hard to believe that this is the epilogue. Man, it's been a journey for all of us.

To say anything about the progress of _Carmina Burana_ in my school would be a little redundant, so if you stick around for _Paranoia_ I'll let you know in there. (Man, it's so hard to believe that this fic is actually going to end in a few hundred or so sentences.)

I think I'll just finish this A/N now so that the tension doesn't kill me. Here's the epilogue, and I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

Epilogue

**_Eleven Months Later..._**

"Tag! You're it!"

"All right, here I come!"

More chasing around the yard ensued.

Nana, Bowser Jr. and Young Link had all gotten together at Bowser's castle for a small little reunion after the events of the tournament had passed almost a year ago. While they had all grown a little older and were too old for children's games, they found tag to be quite invigorating for a reunion activity.

Bowser and Peach stood at the side of the courtyard, the reptilian's arm wrapped around the woman as they watched the children frolic in their states of ecstasy, smiles shining brilliantly on their faces as the children played.

"So how is it here?" asked Bowser.

"It is not so bad," said Peach. "I never would have imagined that I would end up being queen of my former captor's lands."

The king chuckled lightly, pulling Peach in a little with his arm.

"Neither would I," said Bowser. "I myself never expected to be the husband of the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom."

The former princess nodded slightly, her smile intensifying as her left arm pulled itself closer to the koopa.

"Nobody would have seen it coming," said Peach. "I really have too many people to thank for this moment."

And this much was true, for without a combination of events Bowser would never have proposed to Peach.

It had all unraveled in a stream of events after the tournament had ended; Peach and Bowser's friendship had intensified after the tournament to the point that the letters they sent each other eventually became love letters. Afterwards, one thing had led to another, and Bowser had knelt on one knee and asked Peach to marry her.

"So do I," said Bowser. "I'm proud to know that I have a dependable wife now."

"And I am glad I have a husband who's not afraid of my right arm," said Peach.

As Bowser wrapped his other arm around Peach and gave her a tender kiss to the forehead, the kids watched it happen from behind a bush. They had stopped playing when they noticed that Bowser was distracted by Peach, so they hid behind the bush and peeked.

"Aw, isn't that cute?" asked Young Link. "They're in love!"

"You bet they are!" said Nana. "As I am with my little jewel over here!"

With this, Bowser Jr. blushed lightly, and Young Link and Nana both chuckled good-naturedly.

"Yeah…" said the young turtle as the blush slowly faded. "It's like love is all over the place these days. I mean, think about it; just about everybody that left the tournament is in love with somebody now. I think Young Link is the only person who's single right now."

"Yeah," said the young boy. "I agree. I do wonder what happened to Ness, though…"

"You don't know?" asked Nana, her happy expression fading away "He died."

"He did?" asked Young Link. "What happened?"

"Apparently, some stuff happened where he got a neighbor of his really pissed off to the point that Ness got himself stabbed in the face with a huge shard of glass," said Bowser Jr. "It's kind of sad, really; he didn't know when to stop…"

"Ouch," said Young Link. "That's terrible!"

"I know," said Bowser Jr. "But hey, we have each other now!"

"True," said Nana. "And I love you a lot."

The turtle and the girl hugged each other as Young Link looked at them approvingly.

"Tag!" shouted a male voice as Young Link felt a finger tap his head.

"Ah!"

All three children yelped in surprise when they noticed that Bowser had touched them. Peach stood next to the reptilian as the kids backed up.

"You're it!" said Peach.

The children looked at each other confusingly before Young Link jumped up and the game resumed, except that then everybody was involved in a simple game of tag.

* * *

Roy spread the cloth on the ground as Zelda laid the picnic basket down on the fertile earth and Samus followed behind. 

"This is such a beautiful day…" said Roy. "I'm glad you guys picked today to have the picnic."

"I thought it would be a nice day too," said Zelda. "I can have good premonitions."

The sovereign rulers of Hyrule sat on the cloth as a gentle summer breeze swept by. The princess held on to the child as she laid the basket down. Samus then sifted through the basket, setting plates and food on a table as the breeze continued to flitter by in its eternal game with the sun.

"Indeed," said Samus. "I thank you so much for taking me in despite what has happened."

"Your child has the right to be close to its biological mother," said Roy. "We all share the parentage around here."

Samus had given birth to a baby boy around nine months after the tournament ended, and by that time the former bounty hunter never wanted to be away from it. Thankfully, Zelda and Roy told her that she could take part in the house of Hyrule as a maid, and thus the issue was resolved with very little conflict.

The baby boy itself was a wonder to behold to anybody; its innocent face shone with blonde hair much like his mother's, and it was a wonder that it came from a man who had sinned his entire life.

"Yes," said Zelda. "The baby is so beautiful. I cannot believe we are lucky to be able to be part of this!"

"Neither can I," said Samus as she prepared some of the food. "How does it feel to finally be married?"

"It's… awkward," said Roy. "I love her, don't get me wrong, but I never thought it would get to this level."

"I feel in kind as well," said Zelda. "That man sure messed up some lives in his lifetime."

"You don't say," said Samus. "I feel kind of sorry for him, though."

"Sorry?" asked Roy. "Why?"

"He just died recently," said Samus.

"Recently?" asked Zelda. "But he was supposed to die five months ago!"

"That isn't the case here," said Samus. "Apparently, some things happened that a month before he was going to be executed, he went insane."

"So they sent him to the madhouse?" asked Roy.

"Apparently," said the former bounty hunter. "Where else could they send him?"

"Oh…" sighed Zelda painfully. "That's terrible…"

"You don't say," said Roy. "He did some pretty stupid things in his life, but to die like that…"

"I know," said Samus. "It's tragic."

"Indeed," said Roy as he took a plate and helped himself to some of the food. "I wonder if the others are returning to the tourney like you two are…"

"We'll probably see plenty of old faces there," said Samus. "You haven't been sent an invitation letter yet."

"From what I've heard from Peach, not everybody has received their invitation letters yet," said Zelda. "You might get yours late. Still, you have to come along anyways. I'm competing."

"True," said Roy. "I can hardly wait to meet the new faces."

"Neither can I," said Zelda. "But I will always have you, Samus, and little Gustav here in my heart."

"Aw, come here, you!" said Roy as he pulled his wife into a hug with one arm and kissed Zelda lightly on the cheek.

The princess chuckled a little and smiled.

Their lives could not have been better at all.

* * *

"I bet ten bucks on 'Mr. Snivleh'." 

"We'll-a see about-a that!"

"Yeah! Weye'll seh who wiyins thiyis match!"

"Okay, the pot is due now. And now, let's begin the races!"

All eyes turned to Meta's TV screen as a horse race began. The cheering for each individual horse began, and then in a matter of seconds it was over. The end was accompanied by a bunch of disappointed groans and one very victorious shout from one of the viewers.

Mario was at a gathering at Meta's apartment, and this time he had dragged the doctor and Captain Falcon over since they were in town. The gathering was made to celebrate Palutena's engagement to Pit, and Wario was also seen sitting next to the landlord on the couch.

"Heyeck yes!" shouted Falcon over the other people. "Y'all beyettah geyet thayat moneh iyin tah meh!"

"Now, now, Douglas, let's not get too carried away here," said Dr. Mario. "We all know you like winning the races in more ways than one."

A general rise of laughter went throughout the apartment as the captain gave the doctor a playful bonk on the head.

"Oh, please," said Palutena. "Let's not go there."

"Sorry," said the doctor. "So when are you planning the wedding?

"Six months from now," said Pit as he stood up and handed the bowl with the pot to Falcon. "Here's the pot, man. I hope you and the doctor spend it well."

"Yeah!" said Mario. "So, how is-a life at the Grand-a Prix?"

"It's not so bad," said the doctor. "I have my wonderful captain here to help there, since I'm still a little awkward in there. He's really a very caring person, if you know what I mean."

"Aw, commere y'all!" said Falcon as his arms grabbed the doctor and pulled him into a hug as everybody in the room sighed approvingly.

"Yeah," said Pit. "So you comfortable with your brother now, Mario?"

"Very," said the plumber. "I'm kind of-a glad he has somebody for-a him, actually! With-a that, I can-a be certain that he's-a happy!

"I'm glad you think that," said Meta. "Of course, a lot of things have changed now that Luigi isn't here, but that hasn't made a dent with the doctor, has it?"

"No," said Mario. "Man, I-a still miss Luigi."

The plumber's gaze went down to the floor as the conversation ensued.

"Well, you still have the doctor to care for," said Wario. "That's better than nothing, as I like to say these days."

"Indeed," said the doctor.

"The next race is starting!" said Palutena, bringing out another bowl from the kitchen. "Place your bets here!"

"Okay then!" said Pit. "I vote for 9-Valt!"

"Let's-a see how well Grillon does here," said Mario.

Bets were placed, and attention turned back to the television screen.

* * *

Falco paced around impatiently on the deck of the Great Fox, which floated in space as it made its slow trek to a destination that Falco was uncertain of. 

The Star Fox team had gotten a call from General Pepper two hours ago that something was amiss on the planet Katina. Whatever it was, Falco was about ready to take it down right then.

However, he was stuck waiting on the Great Fox.

And waiting was something that Falco never liked to do.

A series of footsteps came from down the hall as the figure of Fox McCloud plodded into view.

"Heya, Fox," said Falco. "What's up?"

"I'm fine," said the Fox as he approached the bird. "You getting tired of waiting?"

"Ya bet I am!" said Falco. "I could right about bust meself some skulls right now!"

"Now, now, Falco," said Fox, waving his hands pacifistically as he stepped back a little. "Let's not get too into that kind of thing."

"But I can't wait tah bash some things in!" said Falco. "Man, this wait is terrible."

"Well, it only gets worse the more you think about it," said Fox. "Take a deep breath."

The bird did what he was told, and then he looked at Fox with a little bit of delirium in his eyes.

"You'll be fine," said Fox. "Wait times don't kill people."

"Okay, okay," said Falco. "Still, I really want some action around here."

"Well then, why don't you not—" began Fox.

A small beeping interrupted the vulpine's thoughts as Falco looked down at his pocket.

"Oh, dear!" said Falco, pulling out a small grey object from his pocket. "Hold on a second."

The bird opened the object up and put it against his face.

"Hello?" asked Falco into the receiver of his space phone.

"Hello, Falco," said the voice of Matthew Hand from the other side.

"Oh, heya Matt!" said Falco. "What's up?"

"Nothing completely new," said the head of the tourney from the other side of the line. "I'm still sending out invitation letters."

"Is that why ya haven't sent me mine yet?" asked Falco.

"I'm still determining," said Matthew. "I hope that the panel of judges that picked the competitors last year takes you into consideration, because I really think that you are one of the greatest friends I've ever had."

"Really?" asked Falco.

"Yeah," said Matthew. "How are things going with Kat?"

"Oh, she's fine," said Falco as he renewed his pacing around the hall. "I gotta say; she really is a good girl. It's no wonder I love her, really."

"Good, good," said Matthew.

"And how're things with Jeff?" asked Falco.

"They are fine," said Matthew. "We're a lot like each other, actually. I am glad I met him two months ago. Man, he is one of the most wonderful people on this planet."

"Really?" asked Falco.

"Yeah," said the head of the tournament. "He heads his own fighter's club somewhere, though. I never knew _that_ until recently. We're way too similar, yes?"

"Indeed," said Falco. "Listen, I need tah go now. We at Star Fox are going to have to get a mission going soon, so I need tah leave."

"That's okay," said Matthew from the other side of the line. "In that case, I'll keep in touch. Bye."

"Bye," said Falco.

The bird brought the phone down to his eye level, and then he hung up on the head of the tournament.

"Matthew?" asked Fox.

"Yep," said Falco. "It makes me wonder what's going on with who's going tah be accepted into the new tourney and all that. Not everybody's gotten their letters you know."

"Yeah," said Fox. "Rest assured though, I will be going over there."

"True that," said Falco.

"I think we better go over to the bridge to check the mission status," said Fox. "Are you okay with this?"

"'Course I'm okay with it," said Falco. "Come on."

The two of them plodded down the hall as the Great Fox sailed towards its destination.

* * *

A beautiful starlit sky hovered above the earth as two figures plodded on the damp earth. 

Ganondorf and Marth had had it very lucky for them after they had exiled themselves from their thrones and from society to go their own way. They were lucky to be found by a wild tribe of half-human beasts that resided in a world foreign to both of them when they were both running low on what they needed to survive. It turned out that the tribe was very accepting towards Marth and Ganondorf, and thus the exiled royals were able to express their love for each other out in the open.

Of course, Ganondorf has asked that he take Marth outside of the tribe's camp for once, as he had an important question to ask the former prince.

As they walked, the former king held a little bundle in his hand, and yet he was careful not to let Marth see what it was. Marth could not see what it was until they had gotten to their appointed spot, so Ganondorf knew everything was fine.

Finally, they stopped on a hillside that overlooked a large expanse of forest with a few mountains in the horizon. The stars twinkled brightly overhead as they stood and took in the beauty of it all.

"How do you like it?" asked the king.

"I think it is beautiful," said the prince. "I always imagined this would be the place where I would someday run free through. I do not regret my decision."

"And neither do I," said Ganondorf. "I still cannot believe that the laguz permit people like us to marry."

"Neither can I," said Marth. "It is so mysterious to me…"

"They seem to like us a lot," said Ganondorf. "Something nags at me as to their true nature, but as long as we stay with them, we shall persevere."

"Indeed," said the prince.

They admired the sky in silence as Ganondorf wrapped his free arm around the prince and pulled him up against him. The two of them watched the stars twinkle for quite a while.

Finally, the king let go of Marth and stepped back. The prince turned around to look at the king, wondering why he was doing this.

"Marth," said Ganondorf. "I have a question to ask you."

"Go ahead," said Marth.

The king nodded, and revealed the bundle that he had held in his hand the entire time to Marth. As he did, the king knelt on his left knee and held the bundle up for Marth to grab.

The prince could not resist the temptation, and he took the bundle lightly from Ganondorf, lightly undoing the swirl of black satin that surrounded whatever was inside.

Finally, however, the prince beheld one of the most gorgeous rings that he had ever seen in his life; handsome chunks of carved alexandrite rested on a throne of gold in a semicircle that took up the space of the ring. The gemstones were arranged so that the stones got larger as it went to a large centerpiece for the jewels; this took the shape of a heart that shined gloriously in the night sky.

Marth's gaze was transfixed on the ring before he looked back at the king.

"Will you take my hand in marriage?" asked Ganondorf, holding his hand out for the prince to take.

Marth stared first at Ganondorf, then at the ring he had been given, clear surprise reading on his face.

Then, the prince's face lit up as he took the king's hand into his own.

"You know my answer is yes," said the prince as Ganondorf took the ring and slid it into Marth's right ring finger.

"Marth…" said Ganondorf, smiling a little.

Finally, lips met under the expanse of the night sky as two lovers held each other in a tight embrace, neither of them wanting to let go amidst the twinkling of the night sky.

* * *

**Fin.**

* * *

A/N: Well, it's over! 

Man, this was a hell of a ride for me; not only is it the only real fic that I'm satisfied with in terms of ideas, but it's also one of my most popular.

I have quite a few people to thank for this. Of course, the thanks will go in order of least important to most important, so you know the rest.

First of all, I would like to thank the people that put this fic on their alert list but never really reviewed substantially. I really appreciate you trying to read it, so I give you thanks:

ElementUchihaMaster and Twanny Bizzle

Next, I would like to thank anybody that reviewed only at the beginning but left encouraging reviews:

El Nino1, wolf-eyes555, she is the killer queen, Alyne, bijoukaiba, Oy0, RavenGhost, and Ellulah.

After that, I would like to thank the other reviewers that were encouraging but left very little in the middle and end:

Estuarial, WakaLaka4life, JtheChosen1, Lena, Insanity Strikes Thrice, and Yoshizilla.

Afterwards, I would like to thank my faithful reviewers for providing the feedback that really kept the fic alive:

FlamingDoritos, Fairy Red, and Lady Harkinian.

Next, the people that left this on their favorites deserve my thanks for liking the story:

El Nino1, Estuarial, Element Uchiha Master, Flaming Doritos, Hikaru Tsukyono, Lady Harkinian, Oy0, Twanny Bizzle, and WakaLaka4life.

And lastly, I would like to thank RoyalFanatic for everything. Sure, she qualifies for the alert, faithful reviewer, and favorites list things, but she holds a special place here. She is the one that deserves the most thanks here; without her story _A Forbidden Love_, this fic would never have come into fruition. Therefore, she gets the most thanks.

And with that, I end the fic. Stick around for _Paranoia_, and if you liked _Symphonische Metamorphosen_ be sure to check out my other fictions.

--Herr Wozzeck.


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